Joaquin Phoenix's parents were pretty culty. In the 1970s, they were part of Children of God, a cult associated with prostitution and child abuse. Members used sex to get people interested in joining—they said it was their way of showing God's love. In fact, the Phoenixs' last name wasn't originally Phoenix—when they got so into the whole redemption thing, they changed it. Joaquin means "God will determine," and the actor's siblings all have uber hippie names like Rain, Liberty, Summer and, of course, River. Joaquin acts extremely weird from time to time and while we don't know if the whole cult upbringing has anything to do with it, I bet it didn't help. [Guardian UK]
