Joaquin Phoenix's fake documentary has made him less controlling.

The 40-year-old actor claimed in 2009 he was giving up acting to become a rapper amid a series of bizarre situations - including an infamous interview with David Letterman in which he was uncommunicative - but it later emerged it was a spoof for a fly-on-the wall film, 'I'm Still Here', and the 'Her' star found his experiences reignited his love of acting.

He told Germany's Glamour magazine: ''I rediscovered the job for me, when I made the fake documentary 'I'm Still Here' in 2010. We just started filming and did not know what we would end up with in the end.

''Before, I always thought you needed to play a role very precise. Since 'I'm still here' I have neutral feelings when stepping in front of a camera and react to my surroundings instead of trying to control everything.''

The 'Inherent Vice' star has previously admitted he found working on the documentary ''liberating'' because it took him out of his comfort zone.

He said: ''I'm under the impression that it was a liberating experience for me. Unlike when you're acting and everyone is there to support you and you can do take after take, when I did those live music shows and the movie, the safety net wasn't there. Or maybe the safety net was there, but it was old, worn, full of holes and probably going to collapse.''