Director Casey Affleck has admitted that his new movie starring Joaquin Phoenix is a hoax.

I’m Still Here portrays Phoenix’s apparent decision to ditch his acting career to follow his life-long ambition to become a rapper.

The movie, which opens today (September 17) has been panned by critics, but the director has always maintained that the plot was genuine.

However, in an interview with the New York Times, Affleck confirmed that Phoenix was acting.

“It’s a terrific performance, it’s the performance of his career,” he said.

Affleck, who is Phoenix’s brother-in-law, said he ”never intended to trick anybody” with the storyline, which follows Phoenix over a 12-month period.

He also confirmed that the opening scenes of the film, which show old footage Phoenix and his siblings swimming in a water hole in Panama were actually shot in Hawaii using actors. The clip was then aged to look more authentic.

Many critics slated the movie, but Affleck said much of the criticism could be attributed to his silence over the plot’s legitimacy.

(by Jason Gregory)