Casey Affleck says film no hoax

Reuters

BACKING HIS BUD: Casey Affleck insists his documentary on Joaquin Phoenix is "not a hoax".

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Casey Affleck insists his documentary on Joaquin Phoenix is "not a hoax".

The star makes his directorial debut with I'm Still Here, about his troubled brother-in-law. Casey is married to Joaquin's younger sister Summer and he has been friends with the actor since they were teenagers.

Joaquin sported a wild beard and claimed to be quitting Hollywood to embark on a hip-hop career in the past year, sparking speculation his erratic behaviour was a show for the documentary. However, Casey insists the film is true to life and depicts a side to Joaquin that he usually hides from the public.

"There's no hoax about it. I really wanted to do something that showed somebody that was very private and was also very, very, very well known," Casey explained in an interview with British newspaper The Independent.

"I wanted to do a super-intimate portrait of them. And I wanted to do something now because I knew that he was quitting acting to embark on this journey, this transition, to a music career - which he has been doing for a long time, by the way.

"It just seemed like it came out of the blue to everyone, because they just didn't know that about him. And I thought something interesting would happen over the course of that transition - and I was right."

It has been reported the documentary - which was filmed over two years - shows Joaquin snorting cocaine, ordering call girls, being rude to his assistants and enjoying oral sex with a publicist.

Casey insists being famous isn't easy. He believes many stars suffer a public meltdown because they can't handle the attention that comes with being a celebrity. The 34-year-old does his best to shun the limelight and although he loves his job, he hates facing constant scrutiny.

"People spend 20, 30 years of their life being not-famous, and then they get famous, and millions of strangers suddenly know them and it's very off-putting," Casey said.

""I think everybody wants to keep the opportunities that fame affords you - the money and the work. But there aren't so many people that like the rest of it. I certainly don't.

"I wish that I could win the lottery and then I could sit back and work on only the things I love! But then so does everyone else in the world."