"Rebel Without a Cause" supporting actor Sal Mineo captured the hearts of many when he played the role of a tender, abandoned and confused teen named Plato who was in search of the meaning of life alongside his characters, Jim and Judy, played by the legendary James Dean and Natalie Wood. 

Actor James Franco, is honoring the late actor with a bio-pic based on Mineo's last days called, "Sal."  The trailer was released online today after premiering last month at the Venice Film Festival.

In 1955, Mineo starred alongside Dean in "Rebel Without a Cause," which earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. He teamed up with Dean again in "Giant," and earned further accolades for his role in Otto Preminger's Exodus, for which he won a Golden Globe and another Oscar nomination, according to E! Online.

Mineo "hit it big as a pop singer, but his career went into decline after his public acknowledgement in the late '60s that he was gay, making him one of the first big name actors to come out. He was murdered in a robbery in February, 1976," E! adds.

Who plays the fascinating yet challenging role of Sal Mineo?

Actor Val Lauren plays Mineo during his last days before his tragic death when he was trying to make comeback in theater. Mineo played a bisexual burglar in the comedy, "P.S. Your Cat Is Dead."

Franco debuted his actor-writer-director's adaptation of William Faulkner's "As I Lay Dying" in Cannes in May, and his movie based on Cormac McCarthy's "Child of God" had its first showing in Toronto last month," according to ABC News.

"Sal" will be available on VOD and iTunes on October 22 and will be featured at the Austin Film Festival Oct. 24-31.