James Franco  has pulled out of the upcoming film The Iceman, due to mysterious reasons, according to JustJared.com.

With a 2012 release date planned, the absence of Franco has the left a gaping hole in the already star-studded cast. Michael Shannon (Boardwalk Empire, Reservation Road) and Benicio Del Toro (The Usual Suspects, Che) star, with Ariel Vromen set to direct. We even posted a test scene that was shot for financing purposes.

Franco was set to play, Mr. Softee, the fellow hitman of infamous Mafia assassin Richard “The Iceman” Kuklinski, played by Shannon. Del Toro plays Roy DeMeo, Kuklinski’s boss and ally of the Gambino crime family. The film will chronicle the very bloody life of Kuklinski, who began killing at the age of 14 and managed to hide all his wrong doings from his wife, Barbara Kuklinski. His death count has been reported to be between 100 and 200 victims.

However, because of Franco’s departure — the film may seize to exist.

According to a source provided by Just Jared, “James pulled out because he couldn’t come to an agreement on key contractual issues that didn’t involve financial terms.”

Hollywood sees this all the time: a big star pulls out of a film and the production companies find someone new. It’s hard to say if Franco was destined to play the role of Softee, or if he’s easily replaceable.

But don’t worry, you won’t have to wait too long to see Franco on the big screen once again. Franco is set to star (among several other projects) in Seth Rogen’s directorial debut, The Apocalypse coming out next year. As well as Sam Raimi’s prequel to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, titled Oz: The Great and Powerful out sometime in 2013.

Will you see The Iceman even if Franco isn’t a part of it?

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