Dave Franco Says He's Aware of Luigi Mangione Comparisons: 'Never Received More Texts in My Life About Anything'
Dave Franco may not have gotten any "official" offers to play Luigi Mangione, but that doesn't mean he hasn't seen the comparisons.
The 39-year-old actor — who has been the subject of several viral posts about his apparent resemblance to the alleged shooter of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson — told The Hollywood Reporter at the Sundance Film Festival that he is well aware of fans comparing his appearance to that of Mangione.
While promoting the horror film Together, which also stars his wife Alison Brie, Franco was asked if anyone had reached out about the topic.
'Anyone?" Brie, 42, responded. "Do you mean everyone?'
'I have never received more texts in my life about anything," Franco said in an interview published on Saturday, Jan. 25.
Related: Luigi Mangione's Christmas Behind Bars: A Meal of Cornish Hen and Sleeping on a 2-Inch Mattress (Exclusive)
Brie, who married Franco in 2017, then clarified that she doesn't think there's been any "official offers" for her husband to take on the role, with Franco also confirming that nothing official is in the works.
"Not just friends," he said of those who have been contacting him. "Anyone who has my phone number has reached out about it."
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After Mangione was arrested in Altoona, Pa., on Dec. 9 — days after Thompson's fatal Dec. 4 shooting outside of a New York City hotel — Franco became the subject of multiple viral posts on X and beyond, with his name ultimately trending on the platform.
Mangione, who faces murder and terrorism charges in connection with Thompson's killing, is being held in a New York federal facility. He previously pleaded not guilty to charges in a Manhattan courtroom on Dec. 23 and has also pleaded not guilty to the weapons charges he faces in Pennsylvania.
Related: Alison Brie and Dave Franco (in a Leonardo DiCaprio T-Shirt!) Step Out for Sweet Movie Date Night in L.A.
Internet users aren't the only ones pointing out the apparent resemblance between Franco and Mangione, 26. Since his arrest, the alleged gunman has also been the subject of a few different references on Saturday Night Live, including in a Dec. 14 sketch where Sarah Sherman appeared as Nancy Grace during her take on Crime Stories with Nancy Grace, as she attempted to explain how Mangione had "women and gay guys alike all hot and bothered."
In the sketch, Sherman's Grace joked that Mangione "looks like Dave Franco with Eugene Levy eyebrows."
The remainder of the sketch also featured Kenan Thompson as Donnell Davis — a character who was "at the McDonald's" where Mangione was apprehended in Pennsylvania — as well as a "guy who happens to look like Luigi Mangione." The cold open wrapped with the show's signature line, "Live from New York, it's Saturday Night."
Elsewhere during the episode, Colin Jost shared a few additional jokes about Mangione during the Weekend Update segment, while host Chris Rock also made a reference to the murder suspect during his opening monologue. 'If he looked like Jonah Hill, no one would care. They'd already given him the chair already. He'd be dead," Rock joked.
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