Phoenix hasn’t spoken to Affleck ‘in many years’
When Joaquin Phoenix and Casey Affleck met on the set of the 1995 film “To Die For,” they both were young, hot, up-andcoming Hollywood actors. The future Oscar contenders became so close that they lived in the same New York City building, enjoyed the city’s nightlife together and got matching tattoos in Italy.
They also became brothers-in-law when Aff leck married Phoenix’s younger sister Summer in 2006.
But their friendship became problematic — personally and professionally — when they teamed up for the experimental 2010 mock- documentary “I’m Still Here.” Affleck directed Phoenix, playing a semi-fictional caricature of himself as a selfdestructive actor trying to become a hip-hop artist.
Just ahead of the #MeToo era, the production of “I’m Still Here” became notorious because two female crew members sued Affleck, accusing him of sexual harassment and emotional distress, and of creating an “unprofessional” atmosphere on the set.
News of the lawsuits, which were settled for undisclosed sums, surfaced as Aff leck was successfully campaigning for the 2016 best actor Oscar for “Manchester by the Sea.”
Affleck’s career has never quite recovered from the ignominy of Brie Larson refusing to shake his hand while presenting him with his Oscar at the 2017 awards ceremony. But even before that, Affleck’s once bro- like friendship with Phoenix had already evaporated, with Phoenix revealing in a new Vanity Fair profile that he hasn’t spoken to Affleck “in many years.”
According to Phoenix, Affleck’s subsequent 2015 divorce from his sister Summer also had consequences.
“My sister and him divorced,” Phoenix told Vanity Fair. “And I haven’t spoken directly to him or indirectly in a long time. Three or four years.”
Phoenix, 44, gave the interview for the Vanity Fair cover story while promoting his much-buzzed about new film “Joker.” It’s clear he’s also campaigning for his own best actor Oscar, which means he has to address the controversy over “Joker’s” depiction of a mentally unstable loner who turns to inhumane acts of violence in pursuit of fame as a stand-up comedian.