Joaquin Phoenix to take on gay role in Todd Haynes’ NC-17 film & the internet is losing their minds

Director Todd Haynes has been busy in recent days promoting his new movie at the Cannes Film Festival in France. May December is about an actress (Natalie Portman) who arrives in a small town to study the woman (Julianne Moore) she’ll be playing in a biopic, who years earlier became a tabloid star thanks to her romance with a man (Charles Melton) much younger than her.

If May December weren’t enough to excite gay movie buffs, Haynes let slip that he’s already got his eyes on his next project.

“There’s another movie I want to do in early 2024,” he told Les Inrockuptibles. “It’s a project that Joaquin Phoenix brought to me, and it’s set in the 1930s. A love story between two men, based on an original, very audacious scenario.”

Haynes, who is gay, is famed for some queer classics, Including Far From Heaven, Carol and Velvet Goldmine. Carol starred Phoenix’s wife, Rooney Mara. Haynes noted that if they pull it off, this project would mark Phoenix’s first explicitly gay role.

Haynes also spoke to Indiewire about the project. He said, “The next film is a feature that’s an original script that I developed with Joaquin Phoenix based on some thoughts and ideas he brought to me. We basically wrote with him as a story writer. Me and Jon Raymond and Joaquin share the story credit. And we hope to be shooting it beginning early next year.”

He says Phoenix pushed him to not hold back.

“Joaquin was pushing me further and going ‘no, let’s go further,’” Haynes said. “This will be an NC-17 film.”

There’s no further word on the project, but online, many are already excited at the prospect of Phoenix (actually born Joaquin Rafael Bottom – we kid you not), 48, in a historic gay romance. In the meantime, fans can look forward to seeing him star opposite Lady Gaga in the Joker sequel, which is due out October 2024.