James Franco names and shames childhood bully

James Franco has outed a bully who picked on him in school.

The actor's new movie Goat examines bullying within a college fraternity, and at the film's New York premiere on Monday (19Sep16), the star chose to shame a former schoolmate who bullied him when he was around eight or nine years old.

Naming the culprit, he told the New York Post's Page Six gossip column, "Mark Douglas. He pushed me into a bush. I didn't have an older brother, but one of my neighbours was older and he walked me home for a while."

However James and his pals got their revenge by making fun of the bully in secret.

Goat, which also stars singer/actor Nick Jonas and Warcraft actor Ben Schnetzer, has received positive reviews ahead of its release on Friday (23Sep16).

Nick hopes the film will warn students off joining fraternities, and in particular his younger brother Frankie, who heads off to college soon.

"I said, 'Look, man. Before you decide to pledge a fraternity, I'd like you to see this movie,'" the star told JustJared.com. "Just as a bit of an educational tool (showing) the worst case scenario."