Phoenix: 'My image change is deliberate'

Joaquin Phoenix has said that his new unkempt look is a deliberate move to shake off his sex symbol status.

The 34-year-old announced last year that he was quitting acting to pursue a career in music. He recently made his music debut in Las Vegas, performing three raps songs before tumbling off the stage.

Speaking to The Sun about his long hair, beard and scruffy clothes, Phoenix said: "People have called me a sex symbol in the past, but it's very much an effort. People know me as this kind of thing and in some ways I don't know that this is my look.

"It's been important for me to just do something that's extreme - that really separates me from that public Joaquin Phoenix persona, whatever the f**k that is. Or maybe I'm just lazy."

Phoenix's brother-in-law Casey Affleck is documenting the star's switch from acting to music with a camera crew.