As great of an actor as he is (see “127 Hours” for proof), James Franco is simply starting to get on my nerves. First of the reasons is the fact that he is basically killing himself at Yale University right now trying to get his doctorate in English. Many people praise him for doing this, while still maintaining his A-list status and making all television and movie appearances that he is scheduled.

I say he’s crazy.

“I love school,” he once told People magazine. “I go to school because I love being around people who are interested in what I’m interested in and I’m having a great experience.” And that little voice in the back of my head keeps saying, “He is a celebrity. Honestly, what teacher would give him a bad grade?” I’m not attacking his ability to be a genius, I’m just questioning. It seems almost super-human.

While 2010 was a great year for Franco, what with his Best Actor Oscar nomination and hosting the show itself, he has just made choices lately that really irk me. For instance, Franco joined the social networking site Twitter a few months ago with the main objective of helping to promote the Oscars. In my opinion he has had a little trouble catching on to the site and what exactly to do with Twitter, and apparently he is getting annoyed with it.

“Social media is over. Still up there. Going down. You heard it here first,” Franco told Politico. He has since made his account private. And myself, being one of his followers, cannot seem to even find his account any longer.

Plus, his ability to host the Oscars was a sad try — if you can even call it a try. Anne Hathaway did everything in her power to make it a good show, while it seemed her co-host was a little high and didn’t care how well he did.

In terms of movie choices, “127 Hours” was a great choice for the serious actor. While the movie may have been a little extravagant, it was a great performance by Franco. On the other hand, “Your Highness,” which opened last Friday, is an utter failure and was a waste of this actor’s time. It seems to be “Pineapple Express,” just set in a different time and more of a step-back than an improvement from his first stoner hit.

The “stoner comedy” is great for actors trying to get their ground, but for Franco, who seems to be a more headstrong actor, it is just a poor choice.

To spread the blame, Natalie Portman should have never even signed up for this movie. “Black Swan” was the chance of a lifetime, and I know every movie she does cannot be as good as that, but really? She went from “Black Swan” to the horrible romantic comedy “No Strings Attached.” And now she is also wasting her talent on “Your Highness.”

Moral of the story: Talented actors shouldn’t waste their time and should at least choose good romantic comedies and other movies.

On the plus side, there are a few things I am looking forward to in Franco’s and Portman’s future…

Franco: Set to star in “Oz: The Great and Powerful,” as Oz himself, which will come out in 2013. He is also set to star in a few non-mainstream movies in the next few years: “Lovelace,” “The Iceman,” “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” and “The Broken Tower.”

Hopefully he can pull out some good performances in those.

Portman: Set to star in “Thor,” which I am ecstatic for!

Just for kicks and giggles, check out the trailer for “Thor.”