Joaquin Phoenix and Rooney Mara welcome a baby boy with the sweetest name

Rumour has it that congratulations are in order for Oscar-winner Joaquin Phoenix and his partner Rooney Mara. The couple has supposedly given birth to a baby boy — or at least that’s the story director Viktor Kossakovsky was telling over the weekend.During a question-and-answer session at the 2020 Zurich Film Festival, the Gunda director spilled the tea on Phoenix, who is an executive producer on the film. When asked how he got the actor on board for the project, Kossakovsky shared a story about their similar views on animal rights before revealing that Phoenix is also a new parent. “He just got a baby… beautiful son called River,” he said from the stage.

? Viktor Kossakovsky ?️, Gunda: He just had a baby Boy who's Called River. ( about Joaquin) pic.twitter.com/WuUISnuTsZ

— Max California's Lover (@Paula_FlorV) September 27, 2020

Since the news hit the internet, people have been speculating that the name River is a tribute to Phoenix’s late brother River Phoenix, who died from a drug overdose in 1993. Meanwhile, if Joaquin is a new dad, that would also mean Rooney Mara is a new mom. Not that either of them have confirmed the news. The couple are notoriously private about their personal lives, but it’s believed they’ve been dating since at least 2016, after they met filming the 2013 movie Her.In 2019, various outlets reported that Phoenix and Mara got engaged, but the couple has never commented on it. Then, this past May, Page Six reported that they were supposedly expecting, but the power couple never commented on that either. In that vein, fans probably shouldn’t hold their breath for any updates on this baby.One thing Phoenix has been in the spotlight for this past year is his role in Joker, for which he won an Academy Award. Phoenix used that platform in February to speak out about animal rights and veganism, something he’s been passionate about for years, having been a vegan since he was three years old. That also makes Gunda pretty on-brand for him: the film is an American-Norwegian documentary that follows the daily life of a pig, two cows, and a one-legged chicken.While Phoenix gears up to promote the American release of that film, word has it that he could also be signing up to do more Joker. The Mirror recently reported that the 45-year-old actor has been offered $50 million to do two more films over the next four years. While Joker was initially supposed to be a standalone offering, box office success, critical acclaim, the Oscar, and the open way the film ended all mean that Phoenix is probably seriously considering the offer.As he ponders that one over, we’ll just send all the congrats his way on his new (reported) family.[video_embed id='2043216']Before you go: Billie Lourd gives birth to first child with Austen Rydell[/video_embed]