Joaquin Phoenix's Hip-Hop Documentary to be Released in September

Whether Joaquin Phoenix’s famed retirement from acting and foray into hip-hop is a hoax or not, it has been collectively decided that audiences will want to see the star’s antics on the big screen either way.

The former actor and current rapper’s life has been filmed by his friend and brother-in-law, actor-turned-director Casey Affleck, for the past two years. NME now reports that the documentary (or mockumentary) will be released and distributed by Magnolia Films in September.

The film is called I’m Still Here: The Lost Year of Joaquin Phoenix and it follows Phoenix’s career change and transformation starting in October 2008.

Affleck showed the film to Magnolia in May, after which the company’s president, Eamonn Bowles, had this to say:

“No matter what I thought coming in, I came out feeling this was a pretty amazing piece of work, jaw-dropping but dimensional. It is going to get a lot of attention, but it is not some cheap stunt where they said, 'Let's do some wild stuff and film it.' It is extreme behaviour but really good filmmaking as well. Frankly, some of the behaviour is very extreme. But it is in the context of the insanity of being in Joaquin's life for that period of time. It is a unique piece of work that is going to surprise people in different ways."

The film is said to include a scene in which Phoenix snorts cocaine off a prostitute’s breast, massive amounts of male frontal nudity, and a man defecating on Phoenix.

Despite suspicions to the contrary, Phoenix insists that his rap career, which is managed by Sean “Diddy” Combs, is absolutely real.

"This is not a joke. Might I be ridiculous? Might my career in music be laughable? Yeah, that's possible, but that's certainly not my intention."