According to media reports, Joaquin Phoenix dropped out of Todd Haynes’ untitled, explicitly gay romance film five days before filming began in Mexico.
Production in Guadalajara, a city on Mexico’s southwest coast, has stalled, although sets are built, crew members are ready and scripts are finished. Phoenix is said to have dropped out of the project in Los Angeles before filming began in Mexico.
Haynes’ untitled detective film is about two men in love who flee to Mexico and is set in the 1930s. The “Joker” star developed the script for the NC-17 film with Haynes and Jon Raymond, but there is speculation from crew members that his departure may have been due to his discomfort with such raunchy sex scenes.
Top Gun: Maverick star Danny Ramirez joined the cast in July as Phoenix’s lover. Haynes had made it clear that he wanted the film to be as explicit as possible in terms of depicting gay sex on screen. The untitled film would have been Phoenix’s first gay role on screen.
Phoenix’s starring role was crucial in securing financial backing for the film. During a press tour for Haynes’ Oscar-nominated Netflix film “May December,” he said that Phoenix was the driving force behind the Killer Films production.
TheWrap has reached out to representatives for Haynes, Phoenix and Killer Films for comment.
Currently, production is on hold and Phoenix is not expected to return. Killer Films is not yet looking for a replacement for the star. The crew is now out of work and the film’s investors have yet to be paid. According to Variety, losses could exceed seven figures.
Next, Phoenix will embark on his press tour for “Joker: Folie à Deux,” which premieres at the Venice Film Festival later this month.
IndieWire was the first to report the news following rumors on social media.
