Joaquin Phoenix; Arthur Fleck, Johnny Cash, Theodore, Commodus, and now Oscar winner and a diligent vegan. A 4 time Golden Globe and Oscar nominee and winner of the 2020 and the 2006 Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Comedy, and Musical. He’s also received past nominations for several awards in the Actor’s Guild, BAFTA, and was also conferred with the Humanitarian Award for his work to the Nation Earth film, “Earthlings”.
Joaquin has been a full time vegan since he was 3 years old. According to Mercy For Animals, him and his siblings were on a fishing trip along with their parents. While on board, they witnessed fishes being killed and getting thrown to the side of the boat. He recalls having a profound reaction toward it. He continues explaining how he felt it was a real injustice. It made him distrustful, angry, and frightened of humanity. Since then, Phoenix has been a big time advocate for vegan living and cruelty against animals.
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On Sunday, February 9th, 2020, Phoenix won the Oscar for best actor in a leading role. When accepting the award, he did not shy away from voicing what needed to be heard. Phoenix stated how one collective entity should not have the right to dominate another, thus fear change because we think we’re giving something up. He discussed how the milk we actually use for our coffee and our cereal is mostly taken from a calf’s required intake and how we feel entitled to inseminate a cow, steal her baby, amidst ignoring her unmistakeable cries of anguish. Phoenix expressed his gratitude for providing a voice to the voiceless and ultimately fighting against everyday injustices.
Phoenix also played a role into why this year’s Golden Globes went vegan. According to variety.com, Phoenix initiated a full course menu of only plant based products. It included an array of entrées such as a chilled golden beet soup, oyster mushroom “scallops” with mushroom risotto and a chocolate opera dome for dessert.
At the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival, Phoenix also participated in a vegan protest at St. George Station on a Monday afternoon- just before he was set to receive TIFF’s inaugural Tribute Actor Award. He protested in support of an animal justice advocacy group called BeFairBeVegan. The group had been protesting alongside their ad campaign spreading awareness towards the realities of animal cruelty. According to BlogTO, the ads were mostly intended to remind audiences that animals aren’t as different to us than we normally assume.
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Overall, when he isn’t shooting award winning films, or attending press conferences, Phoenix continues in using his fame to spread more awareness toward the cruelty done to animals. He’s already transformed the traditional menus of the Golden Globes, SAG Awards, and the Critics’ Choice Awards from chicken and steak to everything plant-based. He remains in continuance of attending protests around the world, like alongside UK based animal rights group Animal Equality. Phoenix further emphasizes how it is our personal responsibility to ensure the healthy lifeline of our planet. He includes that there should be more conversations about veganism, how it could effectively contribute to the current issue of climate change, and how those actions could most likely create a long lasting refuge toward the cruelty done to animals everyday.
