Director James Gray: I Feel I Ruined Joaquin Phoenix - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Zoneboy · 02-12-2009, 08:27 PM

'Two Lovers' Director James Gray Baffled by Phoenix's Behavior, Rap Career

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A day after Joaquin Phoenix's bizarre appearance on David Letterman's "Late Show," the director of his final movie, "Two Lovers," said he's just as baffled about Phoenix's turn from Oscar-nominated actor to incomprehensible rapper as everyone else.

"If it is an act, it's the most commited act I've ever seen in my life," James Gray said in an interview with ABC News Radio. "I mean, he built this studio [in his house]. The lengths to which he's taken it are quite extreme."

Phoenix's fatigue with acting was obvious while filming "Two Lovers," Gray said.

"Toward the end of the shoot, he kept saying 'Oh I'm so tired, I'm so tired.' You hear that kind of thing and you think it's a joke," he said. "I just ignored it."

So when Gray, who also worked with Phoenix on 2000's "The Yards" and 2007's "We Own the Night," found out via the Internet that Phoenix had vowed never to act again, he hunted down the star to confront him.

I drove up to his house because his phone was disconnected," Gray said. "He said, 'I don't want to act anymore, I've been doing it for 30 years and if you did something for 30 years, you'd want to quit too.'"

Now, Gray wonders if he's responsible for Phoenix's decision to quit acting and take up rapping, a project he's pursuing with Sean "P. Diddy" Combs and Casey Affleck.

"Two Lovers," which also stars Gwyneth Paltrow and Vinessa Shaw, features an awkward freestyle rap performance by Phoenix -- not unlike his real-life rap debut. Gray revealed Phoenix was imitating him during that scene.

"That rap thing ... in the movie actually comes from something I played for him," Gray said. "I had an obsession with doing that sort of thing as a teenager. ... It turns out that Joaquin is imitating me in a lot of the movie. He said, 'I want to do that, I want to steal from that, I want to do the rap that you used to do.' I said, 'OK.'

"And now I'm seeing him do this thing, and I feel like I've ruined Joaquin Phoenix for the world," Gray added. "I don't want to be the guy that destroyed Joaquin Phoenix's acting

Whether or not Phoenix is ruined as an actor, he's definitely out of sorts as a human being. In his interview with Letterman Wednesday, Phoenix, wearing a scraggly beard and dark sunglasses, seemed completely absent, staring off into space and answering questions with one-word answers.

Halfway through the interview, after a long pause from his guest, Letterman embraced the opportunity to make a fool of Phoenix.

So what can you tell me about your days with the Unabomber?" he asked, eliciting howls of laughter from the audience. Phoenix didn't respond.

When Letterman ribbed Phoenix for chewing gum during the interview, Phoenix took the gum out of his mouth and stuck it to the "Late Show" host's desk.

That seemed to signal the end of the interview. Letterman closed the interview by saying, "Joaquin, I'm sorry you couldn't be here tonight."

Gray saw Phoenix Wednesday night, after the star taped his appearance on "The Late Show," but before it aired. Gray asked how the interview went.

"He said 'Oh it was good, it was really good," Gray said. "I watched it this morning ... I don't know what to say."

Marvo301 · 02-12-2009, 08:39 PM

Don't sweat it Mr. Grey. Joaquin Phoenix's behavior, bizarre as it is, was his own choice and no one else's.

eltonfan80 · 02-12-2009, 09:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marvo301

Don't sweat it Mr. Grey. Joaquin Phoenix's behavior, bizarre as it is, was his own choice and no one else's.

i agree he has lost his mind

catlover79 · 02-12-2009, 10:01 PM

All I can say is - what happened???

88survivor · 02-15-2009, 12:30 PM

You don't see Scott Baio doing this sort thing in the past or today. Could you imagine a bearded Scott Baio rapping to a bunch of chicks and looking bloated? He would have been a laughing stock and the audience would have been like, "What? Is he serious?" True, he tried twice with pop rock in the early 80s and it never took off his career, but he didn't harp on it. True, he is not relevant at all, but he is very smart and it is all thanks to his father, Mario. Scott went to the correct path and that's by starting a family, thus creating the Bailey Baio Foundation site. Joaquin, you are not a rapper nor would you ever be one. Be it a hoax or something, he is on some mind-blowing drugs during that Letterman interview.

TripperFan · 02-15-2009, 04:01 PM

^ I don't know how you got to compare Scott Baio with Joaquin Phoenix, but give this a few months and you'll see that he wasn't strung out on drugs, and the whole thing on Letterman was done for this "mockumentary" he's working on. My bet is that you'll never see him as a rapper, he had NO intentions of being a rapper - this is all an "a la Andy Kaufmann" / "Spinal Tap" thing.

Frankly Joaquin has always creeped me out, but he is an excellent actor.

catlover79 · 02-15-2009, 04:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marvo301

Don't sweat it Mr. Grey. Joaquin Phoenix's behavior, bizarre as it is, was his own choice and no one else's.

02-12-2009, 08:27 PM	#1
Zoneboy RIP, I'LL NEVER FORGET YOU :( Moderator Forum Superstar Join Date: Jul 13, 2003 Location: AT HOME WISHING ALL THIS WAS JUST A DREAM AND THAT I'LL WAKE UP FROM THIS NIGHTMARE. Posts: 34,381	Director James Gray: I Feel I Ruined Joaquin Phoenix 'Two Lovers' Director James Gray Baffled by Phoenix's Behavior, Rap Career Link A day after Joaquin Phoenix's bizarre appearance on David Letterman's "Late Show," the director of his final movie, "Two Lovers," said he's just as baffled about Phoenix's turn from Oscar-nominated actor to incomprehensible rapper as everyone else. "If it is an act, it's the most commited act I've ever seen in my life," James Gray said in an interview with ABC News Radio. "I mean, he built this studio [in his house]. The lengths to which he's taken it are quite extreme." Phoenix's fatigue with acting was obvious while filming "Two Lovers," Gray said. "Toward the end of the shoot, he kept saying 'Oh I'm so tired, I'm so tired.' You hear that kind of thing and you think it's a joke," he said. "I just ignored it." So when Gray, who also worked with Phoenix on 2000's "The Yards" and 2007's "We Own the Night," found out via the Internet that Phoenix had vowed never to act again, he hunted down the star to confront him. I drove up to his house because his phone was disconnected," Gray said. "He said, 'I don't want to act anymore, I've been doing it for 30 years and if you did something for 30 years, you'd want to quit too.'" Now, Gray wonders if he's responsible for Phoenix's decision to quit acting and take up rapping, a project he's pursuing with Sean "P. Diddy" Combs and Casey Affleck. "Two Lovers," which also stars Gwyneth Paltrow and Vinessa Shaw, features an awkward freestyle rap performance by Phoenix -- not unlike his real-life rap debut. Gray revealed Phoenix was imitating him during that scene. "That rap thing ... in the movie actually comes from something I played for him," Gray said. "I had an obsession with doing that sort of thing as a teenager. ... It turns out that Joaquin is imitating me in a lot of the movie. He said, 'I want to do that, I want to steal from that, I want to do the rap that you used to do.' I said, 'OK.' "And now I'm seeing him do this thing, and I feel like I've ruined Joaquin Phoenix for the world," Gray added. "I don't want to be the guy that destroyed Joaquin Phoenix's acting Whether or not Phoenix is ruined as an actor, he's definitely out of sorts as a human being. In his interview with Letterman Wednesday, Phoenix, wearing a scraggly beard and dark sunglasses, seemed completely absent, staring off into space and answering questions with one-word answers. Halfway through the interview, after a long pause from his guest, Letterman embraced the opportunity to make a fool of Phoenix. So what can you tell me about your days with the Unabomber?" he asked, eliciting howls of laughter from the audience. Phoenix didn't respond. When Letterman ribbed Phoenix for chewing gum during the interview, Phoenix took the gum out of his mouth and stuck it to the "Late Show" host's desk. That seemed to signal the end of the interview. Letterman closed the interview by saying, "Joaquin, I'm sorry you couldn't be here tonight." Gray saw Phoenix Wednesday night, after the star taped his appearance on "The Late Show," but before it aired. Gray asked how the interview went. "He said 'Oh it was good, it was really good," Gray said. "I watched it this morning ... I don't know what to say."

02-12-2009, 08:39 PM	#2
Marvo301 I'm NOT a Blockhead! Forum Celebrity Join Date: May 17, 2002 Location: The Great White North Posts: 21,453	Don't sweat it Mr. Grey. Joaquin Phoenix's behavior, bizarre as it is, was his own choice and no one else's.
	__________________ Only a life lived for others is worth living. Albert Einstein A life isn't worth living unless it has impact on other lives. Jackie Robinson Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a better man. Benjamin Franklin

02-12-2009, 10:01 PM	#4
catlover79 God Bless Val Forum Addict Join Date: May 29, 2006 Location: Bewitched in Ohio Posts: 70,376	All I can say is - what happened???
	__________________ "Jesus loves you and He approves this message." "I'm alive. I'm feeling good. I'm trying to live every moment as much as I can." - Valerie Harper, March 2013

02-15-2009, 04:01 PM	#6
TripperFan In God's Arms Now Forum Star Join Date: Sep 14, 2003 Location: Heartbreak Ridge Posts: 12,086	^ I don't know how you got to compare Scott Baio with Joaquin Phoenix, but give this a few months and you'll see that he wasn't strung out on drugs, and the whole thing on Letterman was done for this "mockumentary" he's working on. My bet is that you'll never see him as a rapper, he had NO intentions of being a rapper - this is all an "a la Andy Kaufmann" / "Spinal Tap" thing. Frankly Joaquin has always creeped me out, but he is an excellent actor.
	__________________ If I don't see you in this world, I'll meet you in the next one.....don't be late James Marshall Hendrix Voodoo Chile The Forum Legend formerly known as TripperFan "religion is for people who are afraid of hell--spirituality is for people who have been through hell"---anonymous

02-15-2009, 12:30 PM	#5
88survivor Member Senior Member Join Date: Mar 03, 2006 Location: NY Posts: 1,849	You don't see Scott Baio doing this sort thing in the past or today. Could you imagine a bearded Scott Baio rapping to a bunch of chicks and looking bloated? He would have been a laughing stock and the audience would have been like, "What? Is he serious?" True, he tried twice with pop rock in the early 80s and it never took off his career, but he didn't harp on it. True, he is not relevant at all, but he is very smart and it is all thanks to his father, Mario. Scott went to the correct path and that's by starting a family, thus creating the Bailey Baio Foundation site. Joaquin, you are not a rapper nor would you ever be one. Be it a hoax or something, he is on some mind-blowing drugs during that Letterman interview.