Joaquin Phoenix: I want a family

Joaquin Phoenix "likes" the thought of starting a family.

The Oscar nominated actor is currently single and is yet to welcome any children into the world. But despite celebrating his 40th birthday last year, the star hasn't yet given up on settling down.

"I like the thought of it, but there are no concrete plans yet," he admitted to the German edition of Glamour magazine.

"To be honest, I haven't even planned the next three months."

In his latest film, Inherent Vice, Joaquin plays the hippy-dippy Doc, who dabbles in various narcotics while trying to solve a mystery in the midst of 70s California.

While he thinks a "post-work joint" is as normal as a glass of wine in the US state these days, the star says acting serves as his drug.

And despite being born in the 70s, Joaquin never witnessed the carefree hippy way of life.

"I was four or five years old when my family moved to California towards the end of the 70s," he recalled. "But we led a very normal life, without drugs and free-spirited freaks on every corner like in the film. My mother was a secretary at the NBC - so pretty much the exact opposite of a hippy lifestyle."

Joaquin entered rehab for alcoholism in 2005 and three years later shocked fans when he announced he was giving up acting to pursue a career as a rapper. However he was actually just playing a role, pretending to turn his back on movies for music for 2010 mockumentary movie I'm Still Here, which he co-wrote with Casey Affleck.