In the clip, we see the pissed off Phoenix swear at cinematographer Lawrence Sher for constantly whispering too loudly, before walking out of frame. After the clip ends, Kimmel asked Phoenix who Sher was. To which the visibly embarrassed Phoenix apologetically said: The Jimmy Kimmel episode received a ton of criticisms from a lot of fans who were unhappy that Kimmel played the clip and made Phoenix uncomfortable.
— 2 (@johan_silentio) October 2, 2019
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However, a number of film journalists wondered if the whole thing was a stunt set up by Warner Bros and Joaquin Phoenix. While it’s still a little unclear at this point, Joaquin Phoenix’s publicist has told EW that it was simply a “joke outtake.” In 2009, Phoenix pulled a similar stunt on the David Letterman show. JOKER is currently playing in Malaysian theatres.