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Miami’s oh-so-cool Fontainebleau Hotel was the scene for the latest chapter in the ongoing saga of moody actor Joaquin Phoenix’s transformation into moody rapper. Phoenix was performing at the hotel’s hip LIV nightclub when he was disturbed by a heckler and responded by diving into the audience.
As Phoenix attempted to get in the face of his tormentor, security swarmed the star and eventually dragged him from the club, ending the show not long before it began. All the while, brother-in-law Casey Affleck's camera continued to roll, and the video footage began appearing all over the Internet and undoubtedly on to tonight’s entertainment programs on TV (and, yes, even TravelAgentCentral).
Which leads to the question: How real was the whole incident? Following his announcement about his retirement from acting and his bizarre appearance last month on David Letterman, Phoenix is either suffering major meltdown or creating the greatest celebrity hoax since the days of Andy Kaufman wrestling.
In any case, Ben Stiller might have to pull out his Joaquin Phoenix costume again for an encore of his Oscar-night performance. If nothing else, the actor is keeping comedians in material. And it’s the kind of publicity that a hotel like the Fontainebleau—catering to the cool crowd—wouldn’t turn away either.