Joaquin Phoenix was snapped studying his script while taking a break from filming his yet-to-be-titled James Gray project in NYC, and we noticed several scratches on the two-time Oscar nominee's face.

So what's the movie about? According to IMDb, "an innocent immigrant woman is tricked into a life of burlesque and vaudeville until a dazzling magician tries to save her and reunite her with her sister." Marion Cotillard and Jeremy Renner also star in the flick, and director/writer James Gray previously worked with Phoenix in 2008's Two Lovers. Sounds quite compelling!

In news of the weird joining the weirder, Joaquin Phoenix is in talks to star in a film about the rise of a religion that closely resembles Scientology, Variety reports.

Much like Scientology, Phoenix is no stranger to controversy. He announced in 2008 that he was “retiring” from acting. That statement has been questioned because Phoenix’s supposed rap career was actually being filmed for Casey Affleck’s faux-documentary I’m Still Here. Phoenix hasn’t had a major U.S. theatrical release since Reservation Road in 2007.

See what other quirky actor is signed on for the flick after the jump.

After all that they've been though (the fake documentary, sexual harassment allegations and bad facial hair), at least brother-in-laws Casey Affleck and Joaquin Phoenix still have each other! Both of the men were a bit camera shy when we snapped them leaving dinner last night with some friends in NYC, and Casey didn't have anything to say when we asked about the two women who accused him of sexual harassment earlier this summer.

Casey Affleck revealed that the I'm Still Here documentary isn't real, so naturally Joaquin Phoenix went on the Letterman show to make peace with the talk show host...

If you remember, a super awkward Phoenix made a now infamously bizarre appearance on Letterman in early 2009. But last night he said the following to Dave:

"I mean, I think that you've interviewed many, many people and I assumed that you would know the difference between a character and a real person. I hope I didn't offend you in any way."

Watch the, er, hilariousness above!

We already knew Leonardo DiCaprio was reportedly starring in Clint Eastwood's Hoover as J. Edgar Hoover himself, but we had no idea that Joaquin Phoenix was Clint's top choice to play Hoover's infamous lover Clyde Tolson!

Oscar-winning scribe Dustin Lance Black has written the screenplay for the film, and NY Mag raises an interesting point: Eastwood’s casting agent is scheduled to arrive in LA very shortly, and since Casey Affleck has recently revealed that Phoenix was not a drugged out mess for the past two years, he could very well get the part.

Sources familiar with the film note that the studio hasn't yet finalized a deal with DiCaprio, but Phoenix is "expected to receive the offer to play Tolson as soon as DiCaprio’s deal closes." Can't wait for this! Maybe Leo will finally get that Academy Award?

We wondered if it might be a hoax, but since I'm Still Here was repeatedly billed as a documentary chronicling Joaquin Phoenix's pursuit of a rap career, we weren't sure what to make of it.

Director Casey Affleck has finally admitted that the whole thing was one big fake, and that Phoenix was acting the entire time. “It’s a terrific performance, it’s the performance of his career,” Mr. Affleck told the NY Times. “The reviews were so angry. I never intended to trick anybody. The idea of a quote, hoax, unquote, never entered my mind."

“There were multiple takes, these are performances,” Affleck continued, referring specifically to scenes that portrayed drug use and Phoenix involving himself with prostitutes. Affleck said he also had to convince Phoenix’s agent at WME Entertainment that he wanted Phoenix to act the part in public, but surprisingly he went along with it. "You would think he would have me killed immediately,” he joked.

The long-awaited trailer for the documentary (mockumentary?) about Joaquin Phoenix' attempt to quit acting to become a rapper is finally here and after seeing a series of shots of the Oscar-nominee riding in limos, getting into fights, hanging his big belly out over his pants and looking like the "tortured" artist he wants you to believe he is.

There's also some weird stuff about "mountain top drops of water" but yeah, we don't know what that's supposed to mean in context to the project either.

The movie was embroiled in controversy long before director and Phoenix' brother-in-law Casey Affleck was accused of sexually harassing two women on set. Even though they claimed they were making a documentary of Joaquin's fake attempt to become a rapper, sources told X17online that Phoenix' drugged-out appearance was no joke.

Courtesy: Magnolia Pictures

Here's Joaquin Phoenix in the poster for I'm Still Here: The Lost Year of Joaquin Phoenix, and we have to say, we're excited to see this! Phoenix announced during the fall of 2008 that he had quit acting for a career as a hip hop musician, and Casey Affleck decided to team up with his brother-in-law to document the transformation. Yeah, we were wondering about that too...

So did Phoenix really say bye to the biz during that time, or was his temporary change of careers all for the cameras?