Joaquin Phoenix sparked marriage rumours after calling long-time partner Rooney Mara his "wife" on a podcast, although he did not explain their marital status.
Joaquin Phoenix has ignited new marriage speculations with his long-time lover, Rooney Mara. During a recent interview on the Talk Easy with Sam Fragoso podcast, the Joker actor referred to Mara as his "wife," using the title publicly for the first time.
During his emotional 2020 Oscar-winning speech, Phoenix said, “I was talking with my mom and my wife,” Taking admirers by surprise. Moments later, the 49-year-old actor revealed he was referring to Mara by name. However, Phoenix provided no other information about whether the pair had formally married.
Phoenix and Mara initially met in 2012 while filming Spike Jonze's Her. Although they were not romantically linked then, they eventually reunited on the set of Mary Magdalene. Their romance went public in 2017, and the pair announced their engagement two years later, in 2019.
The pair has kept their relationship primarily quiet, but Phoenix once made a rare statement, stating, "She's the only girl I ever looked up on the internet," shortly after they were engaged. Phoenix and Mara received their first child, a son called River, after Phoenix's late brother, River Phoenix, who died of a heroin overdose in 1993 when he was only 23. Mara was spotted displaying her baby belly during the 74th Berlinale International Film Festival in February 2024, revealing the couple's second child is due.
Despite the speculation, neither Phoenix nor Mara has publicly confirmed or denied whether they are officially married. Fans will have to wait for any further updates from the famously private couple.