News coming out of the Cannes Film Festival has Joaquin Phoenix (“Beau Is Afraid,”) teaming up with Todd Haynes for an NC-17-rated gay romance film.

In an interview with IndiWire, Haynes teased an upcoming project he co-developed with Phoenix.

“The next film is a feature that’s an original script that I developed with Joaquin Phoenix based on some thoughts and ideas he brought to me,” Haynes told IndieWire. “We basically wrote with him as a story writer. Me and Jon Raymond and Joaquin share the story credit. And we hope to be shooting it beginning early next year. It’s a gay love story set in 1930s L.A. Joaquin was pushing me further and going, ‘No, let’s go further.’ This will be an NC-17 film.

Variety

Phoenix has portrayed a gay character in a film before. He played the role of a gay nightclub owner named Juan Antonio in the movie “I’m Still Here” (2010). The film, directed by Casey Affleck, is a mockumentary-style exploration of Phoenix’s supposed retirement from acting and transition into a career in rap music.

Hayne’s latest project, “May December,” is loosely based on the American scandal of Mary Kay Letourneau.