The Oscar-winning actor remembers being overcome with crippling anxiety before he got on a stage for a televised interview and admits he still struggles with similar issues every time he gets a new project.
- Apr 10, 2020
AceShowbiz - Crippling anxiety pushed Joaquin Phoenix to be physically sick as he waited backstage before a TV appearance.
The Oscar winning "Joker" actor spoke with British GQ magazine, and explained he has to take special measures to cope with his stress when working.
Phoenix said he "still gets crippling anxiety for weeks before shooting starts" and "feels physically sick" when he begins working on new projects.
"For the first three weeks of shooting, I sweat so much that they have to put pads in my armpits," he admitted.
Vouching for the star, film director James Gray concurred, telling the publication, "He is incredibly shy - something most people think is an act or something."
Gray, who worked with Phoenix on several projects including "We Own the Night" and "The Immigrant", went on to recall once waiting backstage with him before a television interview, when he got so nervous he vomited. The filmmaker didn't reveal what show the star was due to appear on.
Phoenix, 45, suggested his nerves come about because "everything they teach you as a kid (about acting) is completely f**king wrong."
"They teach you to remember your lines. Wrong! They teach you to follow your light. Wrong! They teach you to hit your mark. Wrong, wrong, wrong!" he said. "Those are the things that you shouldn't do."
Despite his nerves, Phoenix was one of the most celebrated actors during the 2020 awards season, achieving Oscar, Golden Globe, BAFTA, and Screen Actors Guild Award success for his performance as Arthur Fleck in "Joker".
