Joaquin Phoenix has apologised to David Letterman for his infamous "horrible" appearance on The Late Show
The 50-year-old actor memorably appeared on the 78-year-old broadcaster's talk show in 2009 to promote Two Lovers while in character for his mockumentary I'm Still Here -for which he had publicly announced he was giving up acting to focus on a hip-hop career - and he admitted he felt "stuck" because of his commitment to the project
18 July 2025
Appearing on The Late Show, which is now hosted by Stephen Colbert, this week, Joaquin recalled: "It was strange, because in some ways it was a success and it was also just one of the worst nights of my life.
"As part of the promotion for a film that I had made, I was coming on the show, and so I was stuck."
Noting he had begun adopting his hip-hop persona ahead of promoting Two Lovers, he said: "I had to keep it going.
"When I came on the show with Dave, I originally did the pre-interview in character, and I realised that it was just a little silly.
"So I called them back and I said, 'Listen, this is what I'm doing. I'm coming out here and I'm doing this whole thing. I just want Dave to like lacerate me, I just want it to be really dangerous.' "
Because the Oscar-winning star was trying to draw a particular public "reaction", he felt it was "beneficial for no one to know except when needed", which led to a bizarre exchange between himself and David.
He added: "It was horrible, it was so uncomfortable, I regret it. I'll never do it again. I'm so sorry."
When Stephen noted he was unsure if David would be tuning in, his guest added: "He might be, and I just need to say I'm sorry."
After the 2009 appearance, the Eddington star returned one more time for a follow-up interview with David in 2010.
He quipped to Stephen: "I imagine they did like a major exorcism after I left."
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