( CNN ) -- When James Franco does n't like something , you 'll know about it . On Thursday , the 35-year-old actor appeared to take a stand against The New York Times and its theater critic , Ben Brantley , after the paper ran a hesitant review of Franco 's Broadway debut in an `` Of Mice and Men '' revival . In the April 16 piece , Brantley called `` Of Mice and Men 's '' opening night on Wednesday `` respectable '' and `` respectful , '' but also `` generally inert . '' The revival , directed by Anna D. Shapiro , sees Franco portray the smaller , sharper George from the John Steinbeck story , while Chris O'Dowd portrays his oafish companion , Lennie . Brantley wrote that the two leads , who star alongside Leighton Messter , `` wear their archetypes like armor . '' And while the production would make `` an excellent audiovisual aid for middle-school instructors who are teaching ( George ) Steinbeck 's novella , '' Brantley believes `` habitual theatergoers ... should n't expect the kind of revivifying interpretation that makes revisiting a classic feel essential . '' Franco has been blissfully promoting his turn in `` Of Mice and Men '' for weeks , and seemed pretty excited to both land the part and read the reaction to it . Following `` Of Mice and Men 's '' opening night , the actor shared Variety 's more favorable review , which credited director Shapiro for `` an impeccably mounted production '' and praised the ensemble acting as `` flawless . '' But Franco was vehement about the Times ' take . `` Sadly Ben Brantley and the NYT have embarrassed themselves , '' Franco said in an Instagram post that has since been removed . `` Brantley is such a little b**** he should be working for Gawker.com instead of the paper of record . The theatre community hates him , and for good reason , he 's an idiot . '' The remarks have since been removed from Franco 's account , but not before they were screengrabbed for posterity . Vanity Fair 's Richard Lawson shared the image on Twitter , acknowledging that it had been sent to him by a friend .
James Franco appeared to take issue with a New York Times review of his play . The actor makes his Broadway debut in the new revival of `` Of Mice and Men '' After the Times ' reviewed Wednesday 's opening night , he critiqued the paper on Instagram . He said that it was " not an accurate portrayal of my work or what I stand for as an artist. "