Todd Haynes was planning to cast Danny Ramirez and Joaquin Phoenix in a gay romance movie. However, Phoenix left the untitled production five days before Guadalajara, Mexico, filming got underway.
At the Academy Museum Gala on Saturday night in Los Angeles, Ramirez told Variety’s Marc Malkin, “It’s definitely disappointing.” “If anything,” he continued, “If anything, it just gave me more inspiration to keep driving, keep pushing, and knowing that I’m on the right path and approaching the work the right way. So that’s what I’m excited about.”
The movie, which depended on Phoenix’s casting, was in danger after it was revealed in August that he had quit the production, according to sources. Two guys in love in the 1930s who escape Los Angeles and travel to Mexico were the main subject of the NC-17-rated movie.
“It’s definitely a very complicated situation,” Ramirez stated. “The audition process was extensive, and so what I walked away with that was just the artistic validation of throwing down opposite of [Phoenix] in this chemistry read… There was a moment that I was like, ‘Oh, I’ve arrived as a performer.’”
“The most recent update is ‘hopefully.’” Ramirez said in response to a question about whether the movie is still in development with filmmaker Haynes.