A fresh start
Not long before Joaquin celebrated his fourth birthday, the Bottom family abandoned the cult and boarded a cargo ship back to the U.S., where they changed their family name to Phoenix – after the mythical bird rising from the ashes – to celebrate their new beginning. The journey on the cargo ship is what led the family, two months after arriving at the states, to adopt a vegan lifestyle.
In his acceptance speech earlier this month, Phoenix talked about the importance of veganism. As the names of his siblings suggests, Joaquin’s family was very connected to nature and earth. That’s why at a young age, Joaquin, who’s name distinguished him from his siblings, decided to change his name to Leaf. He went by this name for ten years, until he decided to change it back at 15.