Sep 22, 2010 14:59 GMT  ·  By
Clint Eastwood wants Joaquin Phoenix for “Hoover” pic opposite Leonardo DiCaprio, says report
   Clint Eastwood wants Joaquin Phoenix for “Hoover” pic opposite Leonardo DiCaprio, says report

In what could be a match made in method acting heaven, Clint Eastwood is said to be looking to get Joaquin Phoenix to star opposite Leonardo DiCaprio in the upcoming film “Hoover.”

Now that the “I want to be a rapper” cat is out of the bag, Joaquin must be looking for new projects to work on – and Eastwood has just the thing for him, NY Mag’s Vulture has learned.

The famous director is looking into making a film on the life of the FBI director, especially on the relationship he had with his rumored lover and all-time protégé Clyde Tolson.

Negotiations are currently underway to get Leonardo DiCaprio as Hoover, while Phoenix will be offered the part of Tolson as soon as DiCaprio signs on the dotted line, Vulture reports.

“Clint Eastwood’s Hoover is quickly heating up at Warner Bros., where Vulture hears that Joaquin Phoenix is said to be the director’s top choice to play J. Edgar Hoover’s reputed paramour and protégé, Clyde Tolson,” Vulture writes.

“With a script by Milk screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, Hoover explores the two men’s complicated relationship; neither man ever admitted to being gay, and Hoover was known for hunting down and intimidating those who dared questioned his preference while he was alive,” the same publication notes.

However, they were – and continue to be – considered the “original ambiguously gay duo” since their relationship extended beyond work, to clubbing, dining and even vacationing.

Moreover, Tolson was the beneficiary of Hoover’s insurance policy after his death, as well as the inheritor of his estate, which is yet another indication the two were more than just close friends.

Right now, talks with DiCaprio are going well, with hopes being high he may sign any day now, which means an offer for Phoenix is also being prepared.

“Insiders tell us that Eastwood’s casting agent, Fiona Ware (who cast Hereafter), is already scheduled to fly into Burbank from London in early October to begin the casting process,” Vulture says.

This also begs the question of whether Casey Affleck’s admission that “I’m Still Here” was “performance art” was not influenced by the opportunity to have Joaquin work with DiCaprio and Eastwood.

“Fear that portraying him as a drug-addled crazy with a tenuous grip on reality might jeopardize Phoenix’s chances at such a fantastic and potentially Oscar-worthy role” may have prompted Affleck to come clean, Vulture suggests.