Joaquin Phoenix Fake-Out: Biggest Hoax of All Time?
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The guessing game is over. Joaquin Phoenix did not grow a beard and subsequently lose his mind two years ago. It was for a movie.
As we predicted.
The director of "I'm Still Here," Ben Affleck's little brother Casey Affleck, comes clean in a New York Times interview about his new mockumentary.
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Yup, we said mock. Not doc.
And Phoenix's strange appearance on "Letterman" in February 2009, just a few months after he "retired" from acting to become a rapper? Also a fake. Even worse: Letterman, who handled it like a pro, wasn't in on the joke.
SODAHEAD SLIDESHOW: See some of the biggest hoaxes of all time.
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"It's a terrific performance, it's the performance of his career," Affleck told the Times of Phoenix's two-year portrayal of himself, on-screen and off-, as an aspiring rap star on the brink of ruin.
Critics apparently disagree, delivering crushing reviews that are a far cry from the praise 35-year-old Phoenix received for his Oscar-nominated performances in "Gladiator" and "Walk the Line."
But Affleck, like any good prankster, is defensive about his project.
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"I never intended to trick anybody," Affleck told the Times. "The idea of a quote, hoax, unquote, never entered my mind."
Well, Casey, it entered ours -- we saw it coming a mile away. But we can't say the same thing about 2009's "balloon boy" fake-out, which we totally fell for.