Franco is a young Italian boy who appears as a classmate and frequent companion of the title character in the anime Pinocchio: The Series. He is depicted as a child with pale skin, dirty blond hair, freckles, and noticeable buck teeth. His typical outfit consists of a blue dress top with a black vest and a pale pink bow, paired with dark reddish-brown pants and a similarly colored hat. He is notably one of the taller boys in his peer group.

Franco has an impulsive and brash personality, often assuming a leadership role among his schoolmates. He is the primary instigator of their various adventures and schemes, which range from simple fishing trips to far more dangerous excursions, such as sailing to a reportedly cursed island in search of treasure. He is eager to prove his own bravery and toughness, often dismissing more cautious individuals as cowards. However, his bravado tends to falter when he genuinely finds himself in harm's way. Franco also displays a calculating and uncaring side, particularly in his dealings with Pinocchio. He frequently uses the puppet as a scapegoat for his own misbehavior and engages in direct bullying. This mistreatment may stem from the belief that it is more acceptable because Pinocchio is made of wood and cannot feel pain, allowing Franco to rationalize his actions as playing roughly with a toy rather than endangering a real person.

Franco and Pinocchio share many of the same shortcomings, such as acting without thinking and having lazy and selfish streaks, but a key difference is that Pinocchio often faces consequences for his actions while Franco's similar behavior goes largely unchecked. Franco also has difficulty learning from his mistakes, as demonstrated when he proposes a dangerous treasure hunt on a cursed island despite a previous scheme that led to serious harm coming to two of their classmates.

Despite this negative dynamic, Franco does begin to show some signs of change. His attitude toward Pinocchio softens somewhat after the puppet kills a sea monster that was about to attack the rescue ship on which Franco was traveling. The most significant shift in his behavior occurs when both boys are taken hostage by bandits. After Pinocchio frees Franco and defends the village with little help, Franco shows genuine concern and works to rally the adults to intervene. This event marks a turning point where Franco appears to gain respect for Pinocchio.

Regarding key relationships, Franco's primary and most complicated relationship is with Pinocchio himself. From their first encounter, Franco took an unexplained dislike to the puppet, at one point stealing and throwing Pinocchio's detachable leg. His pattern of manipulation includes selling Pinocchio to a puppeteer to pay for his own ticket. However, there are rare moments of genuine camaraderie, such as when the two attend a carnival together. His friendship with another classmate named Anna is on decent terms, though she is often unimpressed by his rash behavior and does not hesitate to admonish him for it. Franco is friends with several other village boys and acts as the leader of their group. He never directly interacts with Cricket, the talking insect who serves as Pinocchio's conscience, but their goals frequently conflict, as Franco's dangerous schemes directly oppose Cricket's attempts to keep Pinocchio safe.

Franco's development throughout the series is one of slow, incomplete change, largely catalyzed by moments when Pinocchio's actions directly save or benefit him. While he begins as an antagonist and bully, his experiences, particularly the hostage situation late in the series, suggest the potential for a more respectful relationship with Pinocchio had the story continued. He does not possess any notable supernatural or extraordinary abilities; his influence comes from his natural charisma, persuasive leadership, and willingness to act on his ideas, for better or worse.