| 2026 | Find Your Friends | Thanks |
| 2026 | Michael Caton-Jones: This Broxburn Boy's Life | Self |
| 2025 | Something's in There | Mitchell Montes |
| 2025 | Three Holes and a Donut | Actor |
| 2025 | Bunny-Man | Austin Boyd |
| 2025 | Squali | Robert Price |
| 2025 | SNL50: The Homecoming Concert | Self |
| 2024 | Largo Winch: The Price of Money | Ezio Burntwood |
| 2024 | Hey Joe | Dean Barry |
| 2019 | Zeroville | Vikar |
| 2019 | Zeroville | director |
| 2019 | Arctic Dogs | Lemmy (voice) |
| 2018 | Future World | Warlord |
| 2018 | For Ed Ricketts | Self |
| 2018 | Future World | Producer |
| 2018 | Future World | Director |
| 2018 | The Ballad of Buster Scruggs | Cowboy (segment "Near Algodones") |
| 2018 | The Pretenders | Maxwell |
| 2018 | Mississippi Requiem | Homer Barron (segment: A Rose for Emily) |
| 2018 | Mississippi Requiem | developed by |
| 2018 | The Pretenders | Director |
| 2018 | Kin | Taylor Balik |
| 2017 | The Disaster Artist | Tommy / 'Johnny' |
| 2017 | The Show | Male Host |
| 2017 | The Institute | Director |
| 2017 | The Institute | Executive Producer |
| 2017 | The Institute | Dr. Cairn |
| 2017 | The Vault | Ed Mass |
| 2017 | Blood Heist | Farmer Simon |
| 2017 | The Mad Whale | producer |
| 2017 | Alien: Covenant | Jacob Branson (uncredited) |
| 2017 | The Mad Whale | Edward Fry |
| 2017 | Don't Come Back from the Moon | producer |
| 2017 | Don't Come Back from the Moon | Roman Smalley |
| 2017 | Tenn | Director |
| 2017 | Actors Anonymous | novel |
| 2017 | Actors Anonymous | Jake Lamont |
| 2017 | The Disaster Artist | Director |
| 2017 | The Disaster Artist | Producer |
| 2017 | Metamorphosis: Junior Year | producer |
| 2017 | Metamorphosis: Junior Year | Director |
| 2017 | The Labyrinth | Narrator |
| 2016 | Burn Country | Lindsay |
| 2016 | Goat | producer |
| 2016 | Sausage Party | Druggie (voice) |
| 2016 | King Cobra | Producer |
| 2016 | King Cobra | Joe Kerekes |
| 2016 | In Dubious Battle | Director |
| 2016 | In Dubious Battle | Producer |
| 2016 | In Dubious Battle | Mac McLeod |
| 2016 | The Adderall Diaries | Stephen Elliott |
| 2016 | Kill the Czar | Actor |
| 2016 | The Adderall Diaries | Producer |
| 2016 | Mother, May I Sleep with Danger? | story by |
| 2016 | Mother, May I Sleep with Danger? | Director |
| 2016 | Why Him? | Executive Producer |
| 2016 | Why Him? | Laird Mayhew |
| 2015 | Memoria | Mr. Wyckoff |
| 2015 | Yosemite | Phil |
| 2015 | Queen of the Desert | Henry Cadogan |
| 2015 | Every Thing Will Be Fine | Tomas Eldan |
| 2015 | Don Quixote | Pasamonte |
| 2015 | The Grapes of Wrath: We Shall Overcome | Self |
| 2015 | I Am Michael | producer |
| 2015 | I Am Michael | Michael |
| 2015 | Black Dog, Red Dog | Writer |
| 2015 | Black Dog, Red Dog | Director |
| 2015 | F for Franco | Self |
| 2015 | The Night Before | Self |
| 2015 | Wild Horses | Ben Briggs |
| 2015 | True Story | Christian Longo |
| 2015 | Black Dog, Red Dog | Leo |
| 2015 | The Little Prince | The Fox (voice) |
| 2015 | Yosemite | based on: the short stories "Yosemite" and "Peter Parker" by |
| 2015 | Killing Animals | book |
| 2015 | The Heyday of the Insensitive Bastards | Conrad |
| 2014 | Third Person | Rick |
| 2014 | Palo Alto | Mr. B |
| 2014 | The Interview | Dave Skylark |
| 2014 | I Think You're Totally Wrong: A Quarrel | James |
| 2014 | Palo Alto | Presenter |
| 2014 | Veronica Mars | James Franco (uncredited) |
| 2014 | I Think You're Totally Wrong: A Quarrel | Director |
| 2014 | Of Mice and Men | George Milton |
| 2014 | Good People | Tom Reed |
| 2014 | The Sound and the Fury | Director |
| 2014 | The Sound and the Fury | Benjy Compson |
| 2014 | Dawn of the Planet of the Apes | Will Rodman |
| 2014 | The Interview | Executive Producer |
| 2014 | Palo Alto | Book |
| 2013 | The Director: An Evolution in Three Acts | producer |
| 2013 | Lovelace | Hugh Hefner |
| 2013 | Homefront | Morgan 'Gator' Bodine |
| 2013 | Oz the Great and Powerful | Oz |
| 2013 | This Is the End | James Franco |
| 2013 | Spring Breakers | Alien |
| 2013 | Child of God | Director |
| 2013 | Child of God | screenplay |
| 2013 | Kink | executive producer |
| 2013 | Interior. Leather Bar. | James |
| 2013 | Interior. Leather Bar. | Director |
| 2013 | Interior. Leather Bar. | producer |
| 2013 | Interior. Leather Bar. | Director of Photography |
| 2013 | Mademoiselle C | Self |
| 2013 | Bukowski | Director |
| 2013 | Bukowski | Writer |
| 2013 | A Fuller Life | Self - Reader (segment: Copy Boy) |
| 2013 | What Is Cinema? | Self |
| 2013 | Playtime | The Art Dealer |
| 2013 | Venice 70: Future Reloaded | Director |
| 2013 | Venice 70: Future Reloaded | Self (segment James Franco) |
| 2013 | As I Lay Dying | Director |
| 2013 | As I Lay Dying | Screenplay |
| 2013 | As I Lay Dying | Darl Bundren |
| 2012 | Francophrenia (or Don't Kill Me, I Know Where the Baby Is) | Director |
| 2012 | Francophrenia (or Don't Kill Me, I Know Where the Baby Is) | Franco |
| 2012 | The Letter | Tyrone |
| 2012 | The Color of Time | producer |
| 2012 | Hart Crane: An Exegesis | Director |
| 2012 | The Color of Time | C.K. Williams |
| 2012 | Marina Abramovic: The Artist Is Present | Self |
| 2012 | About Cherry | Francis |
| 2012 | Hart Crane: An Exegesis | Self |
| 2012 | Maladies | James |
| 2012 | My Own Private River | Director |
| 2012 | The Iceman | Marty Freeman |
| 2011 | Eames: The Architect & The Painter | Self (Narrator) |
| 2011 | The Green Hornet | Danny Crystal Cleer (uncredited) |
| 2011 | Rise of the Planet of the Apes | Will Rodman |
| 2011 | The Broken Tower | Editor |
| 2011 | The Broken Tower | written by |
| 2011 | The Broken Tower | Director |
| 2011 | The Broken Tower | Hart Crane |
| 2011 | Sal | story |
| 2011 | Sal | Director |
| 2011 | Sal | Milton Katselas |
| 2011 | Na Nai'a: Legend of the Dolphins | Narrator |
| 2011 | Your Highness | Fabious |
| 2010 | Howl | Allen Ginsberg |
| 2010 | Date Night | Taste |
| 2010 | Saturday Night | Director |
| 2010 | 127 Hours | Aron Ralston |
| 2010 | Eat Pray Love | David |
| 2010 | William Vincent | William Vincent |
| 2009 | Erased: James Franco | Self |
| 2008 | Milk | Scott Smith |
| 2008 | Pineapple Express | Saul Silver |
| 2008 | Nights in Rodanthe | Mark Flanner (uncredited) |
| 2008 | Camille | Silas |
| 2007 | Good Time Max | written by |
| 2007 | Good Time Max | Director |
| 2007 | Good Time Max | Max |
| 2007 | In the Valley of Elah | Sergeant Carnelli |
| 2007 | Knocked Up | Sol (uncredited) |
| 2007 | Spider-Man 3 | New Goblin / Harry Osborn |
| 2007 | An American Crime | Andy |
| 2006 | Annapolis | Jake Huard |
| 2006 | Tristan & Isolde | Tristan |
| 2006 | The Dead Girl | Derek |
| 2006 | The Wicker Man | Bar Guy #1 |
| 2006 | Flyboys | Blaine Rawlings |
| 2005 | The Ape | written by |
| 2005 | The Ape | Harry Walker |
| 2005 | Fool's Gold | Director |
| 2005 | The Great Raid | Captain Prince |
| 2005 | Fool's Gold | play "Fools Gold" |
| 2005 | The Ape | Director |
| 2005 | Fool's Gold | Brent |
| 2004 | Spider-Man 2 | Harry Osborn |
| 2003 | The Company | Josh |
| 2002 | Spider-Man | Harry Osborn |
| 2002 | Sonny | Sonny |
| 2002 | You Always Stalk the Ones You Love | Actor |
| 2002 | City by the Sea | Joey |
| 2002 | Deuces Wild | Tino |
| 2002 | Mother Ghost | Skateboarder Guy |
| 2001 | James Dean | James Dean |
| 2000 | If Tomorrow Comes | Devin |
| 2000 | Whatever It Takes | Chris Campbell |
| 1999 | Never Been Kissed | Jason |