Joaquin Phoenix may have won two Oscars for 'Gladiator' and 'Walk the Line', but he is an even better actor than it was thought.

Several months ago, Phoenix made headlines when he announced, he was leaving his acting career to reinvent himself as a rapper. A believable declaration, since Joaquin Phoenix's singing demonstration impressed everyone, while performing Johnny Cash's tunes in 'Walk the Line', including winning a Grammy Award for best soundtrack of 2006.

But, if Entertainment Weekly (EW) is to be believed, this supposed career reboot is nothing but his way of lampooning pompous actors and punking the media that covers them. But, can we believe EW? After all, the actor's representative did issue a statement about her client's seriousness about his career in rap.

However, it is entirely possible Phoenix's close friends are giving out this latest 'hoax' line, as a rational explanation for this wacky celebrity's latest bizarre antics. But, if his much-hyped rap career is no more than a well-crafted hoax, then his publicist is not part of it. But, EW's Hollywood Insider blog insists, the actor, together with brother-in-law Casey Affleck is only playing an elaborate, Andy Kaufman-esque prank on the media, and his are in on the joke, as well.