Miss Americana director Lana Wilson shared her reasons for the limited appearance of Joe Alwyn in the documentary centered on Taylor Swift.
Lana, 41, admitted she wasn't very keen on capturing Taylor, 34, and Joe's relationship on camera.
“I didn’t meet him until the very end. Given how much scrutiny her relationships have faced, I didn’t feel a need to film that aspect,” Lana commented during a Miss Americana screening at the Museum of Moving Image in New York City on November 23, as reported by the Daily Mail. “She has endured so much that this aspect should remain private. It wasn’t relevant to the film's themes or the personal journey I believed she was experiencing at the time.”
The director elaborated, “Taylor was undergoing a significant and transformative experience, which didn't really pertain to her romantic relationships. Filming that aspect felt disrespectful and inappropriate to me. It simply never crossed my mind.”
The singer of “Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me?” and Joe were in a relationship for over six years, spanning from 2016 to 2023. However, the couple was famously private about their romance. Taylor's discretion with Joe, 33, stands in sharp contrast to her relationship with Kansas City Chiefs player Travis Kelce.
The Conversations With Friends actor and Taylor discreetly parted ways just weeks after she kicked off her historic Eras tour. Dedicated fans speculate that the “Karma” singer hinted at her breakup with Joe during her March 31, 2023, performance by making an unexpected change to her setlist.
Taylor had usually performed “Invisible String” at her concerts, a song believed to be about Joe as her soulmate. However, she replaced it with “The 1,” which revolves around someone wishing a past relationship had worked out.
TheStewartofNY / Getty ImagesA little over a year later, Taylor released The Tortured Poets Department, which featured “I Can Do It With a Broken Heart,” seemingly alluding to performing for audiences every night despite going through a breakup.
“'Cause I'm a real tough kid, I can handle my stuff / They told me, 'Honey, you have to pretend until you succeed,' and that's what I did / Lights, camera, babe, smile, even when you feel like dying / He promised he’d love me forever,” Taylor sings in the song.
But by late 2023, Taylor seemed happier, and by September 2023, she and Travis, 35, were in a relationship. Since then, they've been open about their romance and both enjoy discussing their time together.
“When you say a relationship is public, it means I get to see him do what he loves,” Taylor mentioned during her Time’s Person of the Year interview in December 2023. “We support each other openly. We don’t mind the others around us. On the contrary, when you hide a relationship, you must go to great lengths to ensure no one knows you’re seeing someone. And we’re just proud of each other.”