Editing River Phoenix (section)

=== Children of God cult ===

In 1973, the family joined the religious cult known as the [[The Family International|Children of God]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Corner |first=Lena |date= July 8, 2011 |title=Rain Phoenix's unusual childhood |url=https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2011/jul/09/rain-phoenix-river-joaquin-family |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |access-date=February 11, 2020}}</ref> His family settled in [[Caracas]], [[Venezuela]], where the Children of God had stationed them to work as missionaries and fruit gatherers.

According to ''[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]]'', Phoenix was raped at the age of four.<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Micah |last=Nathan |title=Remembering River Phoenix, 23 Years After His Death |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2016/10/remembering-river-phoenix-23-years-after-his-death |magazine=[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]] |date=October 31, 2016 |access-date=August 28, 2018}}</ref> In an interview with ''[[Details (magazine)|Details]]'' magazine in November 1991, Phoenix stated he lost his virginity at age four to other children while in the Children of God, but he had "blocked it out."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Gone Before 30: Stars Who Died Young |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/story?id=4174733&page=1 |access-date=2025-02-11 |website=ABC News |language=en}}</ref><ref name=Another2018/> In 2019, his brother [[Joaquin Phoenix|Joaquin]] would claim that River was joking, saying, "It was literally a joke, because he was so tired of being asked ridiculous questions by the press."<ref>{{cite web|last=Hagen|first=Joe|title="I Fucking Love My Life": Joaquin Phoenix on Joker, Why River Is His Rosebud, His Rooney Research, and His "Prenatal" Gift for Dark Characters|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2019/10/joaquin-phoenix-cover-story?inline|work=[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]]|date=November 2019|access-date=July 17, 2021}}</ref> Although Phoenix rarely talked about the cult, he was quoted in an article published in ''[[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire]]'' in 1994 as having said, "They're disgusting, they're ruining people's lives."<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Friend |first=Tad |url=http://www.aleka.org/phoenix/zines/phoenix7.html |title=River, with love and anger |magazine=[[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire]] |issue=March 1, 1994 }}</ref> Arlyn and John eventually grew disillusioned with the "Church" and left the cult in 1977.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Bruney|first=Gabrielle|date=October 5, 2019|title=Joaquin Phoenix and Rose McGowan Spent Their Early Years in a Religious Cult. Then it Became Infamous.|url=https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/a29374581/children-of-god-cult-joaquin-phoenix-rose-mcgowan/|url-status=live|magazine=[[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire]]|archive-url=https://archive.today/20211205050039/https://www.esquire.com/entertainment/a29374581/children-of-god-cult-joaquin-phoenix-rose-mcgowan/|archive-date=December 5, 2021|access-date=December 14, 2022}}</ref>

In the aforementioned interview with ''Details'' magazine, Phoenix said he was "completely celibate" between the ages of 10 and 14.<ref name=Another2018>{{cite magazine|last=Taylor|first=Trey|date=October 31, 2018|title=River Phoenix's Insatiable Appetite for Sex|url=https://www.anothermag.com/another-man/12561/river-phoenix-s-insatiable-appetite-for-sex-deadline-interview|url-status=live|website=[[Another Magazine]]|archive-url=https://archive.today/20221214005754/https://www.anothermag.com/another-man/12561/river-phoenix-s-insatiable-appetite-for-sex-deadline-interview|archive-date=December 14, 2022|access-date=December 14, 2022}}</ref>