Joaquin Phoenix abandons Gay Romance Movie, losses could exceed seven figures

[GDA878 421]

14 hours ago, Roronoa said:

She can’t go to sleep without dreaming yasss Gaga. 

I know you meant Joaquin, but I chuckled picturing Gaga having a nightmare about the yasss days. 

[Ivy 11,468]

So I read a couple rumors

One, is that he was getting sht for taking the role from a gay actor and dropped out because of that reason 

And other one, said that he requested to make some scenes more explicit but it got rejected so he got angry and walked out

 

I hope this won't be affecting anything with Joker, I saw some saying it could affect him being nominated for best actor, but then I only care about Gaga for that so  but I hope this doesn't turn into a big thing 

[Glomer 412]

So weird, this was his project, it's not like he didn't know what he was about to do... 

Regardless of the actual reason, I'm sure this won't sit well with the Academy and people in the industry in general... I don't think it will affect JFAD box-office, but will probably hurt his chances at the Oscars big time 

[Helxig 41,109]

Noone has said it has anything to do with it being a gay movie. It was his film, and they said 'cold feet', but that could mean anything or even just be the PR excuse given for something else. I'm so curious what happened behind the scenes because this is a drastic thing to do

[elijahfan 24,772]

14 hours ago, Ricardo said:

why are people saying this will affect Joker promo? hardly anyone knew about this movie 

Media love drama, and obviously there’s something there. Nobody’s buying that he got cold feet, he’s the one who brought the project forward and he spent months preparing, he didn’t just magically discover a week before shooting that this would be raunchy. He’s also not usually one to shy away from demanding material.

It’s not like he’s gonna be able to hide under a rock until it dies down, he’s going to be in the public eye very soon so it is to be expected that he will have some explaining to do.

 

Edited August 10 by elijahfan

[Gorehound 3,284]

Well that's fair enough. I'd rather they get someone who's gonna really enjoy the roll.

[NATAH 40,524]

can they really not cast someone else in time? like yeah, there's a lot of lines to learn but there's a TONNE of big name gay actors who i'm sure would kill for this opportunity at potential oscar attention

can they not film the rest of the movie whilst they learn their lines or is it more to it than that?

[RAMROD 102,671]

UPDATE: Movie is shelved!

 

Joaquin Phoenix has backed out of Todd Haynes' gay romance just days before it was scheduled to begin filming. Now, the movie has been shelved altogether.

Phoenix was set to star in the untitled film as a man fleeing to Mexico with his lover but pulled out five days ahead of production in Guadalajara, Mexico. He never made it to Mexico and instead exited the project from Los Angeles, per IndieWire, the outlet was the first to report. Phoenix developed the movie with Haynes and author Jon Raymond. Killer Films was set to produce and MK2 was the sales rep.

It isn't clear why Phoenix dropped out, but finances were likely a factor, IndieWire reports, as Variety reports the actor got “cold feet.” International sales for the movie started before the European Film Market in February. However, the project began to decline in July.

Insiders told the outlet last year that the film was going to take place in the 1930s with an NC-17 rating, meaning it's inappropriate for those younger than 18.

“Joaquin was pushing me further and going ‘No, let’s go further.’ This will be an NC-17 film,” Haynes said to IndieWire at the time, adding, “The whole experience was prompted by Joaquin. It was prompted by his daring, his desire to push through barriers and to really get into the uncomfortable places about this relationship. And yet it felt like a very organic process.”

Now that Phoenix is out, the film is no longer happening, Deadline reports, adding that the future of the movie, which was also supposed to star Danny Ramirez, has been uncertain ever since Phoenix left the set a couple of weeks ago, and crew members have yet to be paid.

Producer Christine Vachon confirmed Phoenix's exit on Facebook.

"A version of this did happen," she began on Friday, Aug. 9. "It has been a nightmare."

"And PLEASE -- if you are tempted to finger wag or admonish us that "that's what you get for casting a straight actor" --DON'T," she continued. "This was HIS project that he brought to US-- and Killer's record on working with LGBTQ actors/crew/directors speaks for itself. (and for those of you who HAVE-- know that you are making a terrible situation even worse)."

Meanwhile, Haynes is said to be moving on to his next project, the limited series Trust that he's writing alongside Raymond, per IndieWire.

 

https://people.com/joaquin-phoenix-drops-out-of-gay-romance-5-days-before-production-8693573

[HIM820 1,731]

Kinda shocked by how much negative attention this is getting. 

[Nite 4,311]

I think this will affect his Oscar campaign more than the Joker screenings themselves or Gaga. And the reason being more related to finances sounds a bit more believable than him suddenly getting cold feet in a project he's been pushing himself? Kind of curious about the full story. 

Also people are going real deep in their creative writing exercises with this story

https://www.vulture.com/article/joaquin-phoenix-todd-haynes-gay-romance.html

"LGBT can stand for so many things: lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender; Lady Gaga–Beyoncé’s ‘Telephone”; let’s get bread today; etc. But when it comes to Joaquin Phoenix, the Q in LGBTQ stands for just one thing: quitter. "

 

[Edonis 28,431]

1 hour ago, HIM820 said:

Kinda shocked by how much negative attention this is getting. 

A lot of money is on the line with these kinds of projects. To pull the plug like this, so quickly, by an A list star for undisclosed reasons is going to drum up controversy. 

 

Also, in terms of JFAD promo, media may not be allowed to ask him about the film during promo, but that doesn't mean publications can't/won't talk about it. 

[ode 1,316]

HE'S GAY.

[Roughhouse Dandy 7,713]

I'm blindly speculating based on his reputation that he had an idea the studio wasn't going to let happen so he walked. If that's the case, I respect the commitment to artistic integrity but to pull this so close to filming and leave an entire company stranded without a job is unconscionable. If that's not the case and something is going on, I hope he's doing okay. 

We probably won't hear anything about this on JFAD press tour, but it could definitely affect the films award season chances; industry voters won't be wanting to reward this kind of behavior if he doesn't come out with a very good reason.  

[elijahfan 24,772]

So now the streets are saying that Joaquin pushed for the scenes to be too explicit for everyone's comfort, going as far as unsimulated, so the collaboration fell through over this.

Edited August 11 by elijahfan

[elijahfan 24,772]

7 hours ago, Roughhouse Dandy said:

We probably won't hear anything about this on JFAD press tour, but it could definitely affect the films award season chances; industry voters won't be wanting to reward this kind of behavior if he doesn't come out with a very good reason.  

I'm pretty sure he will be asked, unless he releases an official statement beforehand to clear the air.