Rooney Mara and Joaquin Phoenix Reportedly Welcomed Their First Baby Together

VALERIE MACON, Getty Images

Though the couple hasn't confirmed the news themselves, director Victor Kossakovsky reportedly let it slip at the 2020 Zurich Film Festival that Joaquin Phoenix and Rooney Mara welcomed their first baby together. (Kossakovsky worked with Phoenix on the documentary Gunda.) Not only that, but the director dropped the baby boy's name, and it has us (and probably everyone else) feeling emotional.

According to a People report, Kossakovksy revealed the news yesterday, September 27th, while speaking during the film festival. A video was also posted by a fan account on Twitter, and, in the video, an audience member asks the director about Phoenix.

"He just got a baby, by the way,” the director said. “A beautiful son called River."

River Phoenix, of course, is the name of Joaquin's late brother, and Stand By Me and My Own Private Idaho actor, who died on October 31st, 1993 at 23 years old. So, River Phoenix-Mara's name (or whatever surname the couple decided on) is a poignant tribute to his dad's family.

Mara and Joaquin Phoenix first went public as a couple at 2017's Cannes Film Festival, though they met on set of the 2013 movie Her. According to rumors and reports, the new parents got engaged last year, though neither ever confirmed the news themselves. Clearly, they're private about their personal lives, so, maybe their friend and co-worker Kossakovksy made a bit of a faux pas here.

Phoenix did open up a little about Mara in a Vanity Fair cover story, saying of her, "She's the only girl I ever looked up on the internet...We were just friends, email friends."

Congratuations to new mom and dad Phoenix and Mara. Though we sincerely doubt it, given their penchant for privacy, we hope that now that the cat's out of the bag, we get to see some pics of Baby River.