Joaquin Phoenix Fixes Rooney Mara’s Train at Academy Gala

Joaquin Phoenix and Rooney Mara enjoyed a sweet date night at the Fourth Annual Academy Museum Gala, where the Joker: Folie a Deux actor made sure his better half was looking her best.

Phoenix, 49, and Mara, 39, posed on the Saturday, October 19, red carpet in Los Angeles together, stunning in their formal ensembles. Phoenix opted for a dapper suit with a bowtie, while Mara looked regal in a vintage Givenchy gown.

Mara’s frock was sheer and dotted with delicate floral appliqués across the bodice, cap sleeves and train. A pair of high-waisted lace briefs were seen underneath the slip. For glam, Mara wore minimal makeup and her hair tied back in a sleek bun.

As Mara posed on the red carpet, Phoenix quickly bent down to smooth out her train. He meticulously arranged the edge of the trim to lay flat against the carpet, while she looked on with a laugh.

Mara and Phoenix have been together since 2017, getting engaged two years later. The couple welcomed son River in 2020 and announced earlier this year that Mara was pregnant again. (It is not known whether she has since welcomed the newborn.)

“Rooney and Joaquin love being parents,” a source exclusively told Us Weekly in February. “They’re a team and are really relishing this journey together.”

Phoenix and Mara are notably a private couple but have occasionally gushed about their connection and life with River, now 4.

“Well, certainly I would hope that [he is vegan], but I’m not going to impose my belief on my child,” Phoenix told The Sunday Times in June 2021, specifically referring to his own dietary restrictions. “I don’t think that’s right. … So I’m not going to perpetuate the lie, but I’m also not going to force him to be vegan. I’ll support him. That’s my plan.”

River is named after Phoenix’s older brother of the same name, who died of a drug overdose in October 1993 at the age of 23. The Joker star was 19 at the time.