Image Credits: Joaquin Phoenix via Getty Images (left) | Danny Ramirez via X, @DannyRamirez (right)

Joaquin Phoenix, you’ve got some explaining to do!

The Oscar-winning actor was set to star in a potentially NC-17 gay romance for acclaimed director Todd Haynes (May December, Carol) about two men in 1930s LA who fall in love and have to flee to Mexico.

Well, mere days before production on this untitled film was set to begin, Phoenix himself was on the lam—on the nose, much?

According to IndieWire, the Joker: Folie á Deux star dropped out just as cast and crew was ramping up to shoot in Guadalajara, Mexico in July, putting the entire production on indefinite hold without him. Per reporting, the rash, last-minute decision left many people in limbo, from the film’s financiers to the production crew who still need to be compensated for their work.

Immediately, speculation turned to why the actor would ditch the project, with many wondering if it had to do with the supposed explicit nature of the story—it was set to be Phoenix’s first gay onscreen role, after all.

But the odd thing was: it was all his idea! “The whole experience was prompted by Joaquin,” Haynes told IndieWire in late 2023. “It was prompted by his daring, his desire to push through barriers and to really get into the uncomfortable places about this relationship.”

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After bringing the idea to the director, the two worked alongside screenwriter Jonathan Raymond (who co-wrote Haynes’ 2011 Mildred Pierce miniseries), and Phoenix continued to push it “further into more dangerous territory, sexually.”

As the news spread across the internet, the cinephiles of Gay Twitter X™ began dragging Phoenix through the mud for leaving Haynes and his crew hanging without a Plan B. Here are just a few of the funniest reactions:

Though neither Phoenix nor Haynes have made official comment, legendary producer Christine Vachon—whose production shingle Killer Films has been behind Past Lives, Boys Don’t Cry, and much of Haynes’ output—took to Facebook to spill some tea.

“A version of this did happen,” she writes, sharing IndieWire‘s reported piece. “It has been a nightmare.”

The producer also went on to clap back at those attempting to paint Phoenix’s departure as a reason why straight actors shouldn’t be cast in queer roles, less they chicken out and decide they don’t want to go gay-for-pay.

“This was HIS project he brought to US,” Vachon adds, “and Killer [Films’] record on working with LGBTQ actors/crew/directors speaks for itself.”

A month ago, news broke that rising star Danny Ramirez (Top Gun: Maverick, the upcoming Captain America: Brave New World) was tapped to appear opposite Phoenix, and the role seemed poised to endear him to both the arthouse film crowd and legions of new gay fans.

Yes, among the many indignities of the film falling apart thanks Phoenix’s departure is the fact that we won’t get to watch Ramirez in this “sexually dangerous” role:

According to Indiewire, Haynes will now focus his attention on limited series Trust for HBO, adapting the Hernan Diaz novel “about upper-class financial ruin in the 20th century,” which will reunite him with co-writer Jon Raymond and their Mildred Pierce star Kate Winslet.

So, does that mean this particular “explicit gay romance” movie is a non-starter? Well, it’s certainly not happening any time soon. As Variety reports, financing for the untitled film very much “hinged on Phoenix’s casting,” so it was unlikely they would’ve found a suitable star replacement on such short-notice.

Still, that didn’t stop the internet from dream-casting the role:

But, hey, maybe this is all part of Phoenix’s method preparation for the role. After all, what’s more gay than completely ditching your plans, right?

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