Oscars 2017
Scarlett Johansson pictured at an event - File photo Mario Anzuoni/Reuters

Scarlett Johansson slammed James Franco for participating in the Time's Up movement while "privately preying on people who have no power".

During her speech at the Women's March in Los Angeles on Saturday, 20 January, where the crowd swelled up to more than 700,000 protesters, the 33-year-old actress asked how a person could publicly support an initiative that is helping victims of sexual assault while he abuses his power.

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"How could a person publicly stand by an organisation that helps to provide support for victims of sexual assault, while privately preying on people who have no power?" she said. "I want my pin back, by the way."

Meanwhile, Franco, who recently skipped the 2018 Critics' Choice Movie Awards after multiple sexual misconduct allegations were made against him, attended the 24th Screen Actors Guild Awards on Sunday, 21 January, in which he was nominated for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role for his role in The Disaster Artist.

According to reports, the 39-year-old attended the award show with his girlfriend Isabel Pakzad.

Earlier, Franco had won Best Actor in a Comedy at the 2018 Critics' Choice Movie Awards for The Disaster Artist, beating the likes of Steve Carell, Chris Hemsworth, Kumail Nanjiani and Adam Sandler.

He was also adjudged the Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical at the 2018 Golden Globes for his role, but was hit with sexual misconduct allegations right after winning the award.

Five women have accused Franco of sexual misconduct, with actress Sarah Tither-Kaplan claiming the actor "participated in an abuse of power" on film sets and created a "culture of exploiting non-celebrity women". Violet Paley, who dated Franco in 2016, has also accused the actor of pressuring her into performing oral sex on him.