One of the best interviews that I have ever seen, was the interview with Joaquin Phoenix and David Letterman on his Late Show With David Letterman. The interview, while many feel was staged, it sure didn’t seem so. It was, however, uncomfortable, cringeworthy, hilarious, ridiculous, and Andy “Kaufman-esque”.
You will twist and turn in your seat watching this. You will wonder if Phoenix is on drugs. You will ask why is Letterman being such a dick. And you will say to yourself, “There is no way this is real!”
Why Did Some Say it Was Staged?
At the time that Phoenix did the interview, he seemed to be going through some sort of crisis.
- Phoenix decided he was no longer going to act ever again in Hollywood.
- He became somewhat of a rapper. This was chronicled with a performance at LIV Nightclub in Miami where he performed and eventually got into a fight with a heckler in the crowd. He literally jumped off the stage at the heckler and all chaos ensued.
- The former actor was making a documentary film “I’m Still Here” (directed by Casey Affleck) at the time of the Letterman interview that showed him completely falling apart.
- Phoenix, after a ton of backlash, pulled the plug on the whole joke and said everything he was doing was some sort of performance art.
No matter what you actually believe, this interview is a must…must see!
