It’s been quite some time since the public caught a glimpse of the acclaimed actor Daniel Day-Lewis. After he announcement in 2017 that he would no longer pursue acting, just before the release of Phantom Thread, the actor quietly faded from view. However, during his hiatus, his legend expanded further.
The Mythos Surrounding His Acting Method
Largely, this legend revolves around his preferred approach to roles. Being an actor known for immerses himself in the roles he plays – for instance, while filming the Lincoln biopic, he had Steven Spielberg address him as “Mr President” for the entire production – audiences has become increasingly obsessed with how he works. Did he really send texts to Sally Field as Abraham Lincoln? Did he only eat animals he’d killed for Last of the Mohicans? And did he demand being spoon-fed while filming My Left Foot?
Madness in their method: have we lost interest with over-the-top performances?
Now, Daniel Day-Lewis has returned in the limelight, with some hesitation, promoting his latest movie Anemone. And he is taking this chance to express his anger at how method acting is perceived. “I’m a little cross nowadays to hear various individuals gobbling off and using phrases like ‘gone full method’, which I think is meant to imply that someone is behaving like a lunatic in a drastic way,” he stated to the New York Times. “Everyone tends to focus on superficial aspects of acting, and these elements always seem to involve some form of self-punishment or an experience that imposes upon oneself a severe discomfort or psychological strain. However, in the career of an actor, it has to principally be about the inner transformation.”
An Industry of Imitators
To be honest, this sounds as if the actor has emerged from his retreat and found himself shocked by the world that has been created in his image. When you are regarded as among the best actors in history, and your process includes striking a prop to the point of injury (in Gangs of New York) or spending 48 hours in solitary confinement without food or water (for In the Name of the Father), it’s natural that fellow performers will want to emulate that example by trying to mimic their idol.
Essentially, we exist in an environment full of imperfect Day-Lewis impersonators who strive only to show the world the sheer amount of dedication they invest in their roles. At the shallow end of the pool there are performers such as Lady Gaga, who was so desperate to win an Oscar with House of Gucci that she spent the whole campaign attempting to persuade people that she transformed into an Italian native over 18 months as preparation.
Then we have Jared Leto, who chose to deeply embed himself in the character of the Joker (in Suicide Squad) by sending “disturbing” gifts to his castmates. These, according to various accounts, range from dead pigs and rats to anal beads and used condoms, though the actor refuted those worst excesses. And then, naturally, we have Jim Carrey, who went so deep as Andy Kaufman for Man on the Moon that they literally managed to get a feature-length documentary out of B-roll of him causing difficulties as impossible as he could for his colleagues.
Contemporary Followers of the Method
The foremost Method Guy currently would appear to be Jeremy Strong (formerly an assistant to Day-Lewis), whose process during Succession was so rigorously detailed that it formed the basis of a derisive New Yorker profile, full of quotes from individuals who were worried for his behaviour (“It’s the cost to himself concerns me,” said Brian Cox) or extremely irritated by his actions (“I remember [him] making everyone else to react with exasperation,” said an unnamed co-star).
Daniel Day-Lewis says he ‘never intended to stop acting, truly’
We have so many other examples. Andrew Garfield went celibate for six months while preparing for Silence. Leonardo DiCaprio slept in a dead animal for The Revenant. There’s a fighting chance that actor Austin Butler continues to talk in the style of Elvis, three years after the movie’s release. All of this, to some extent, aims to evoke the dedication in which Day-Lewis approaches his work.
An Admirable But Uphill Fight
Moreover, while his fightback against method detractors could be commendable, a short publicity tour might not be enough to alter perceptions, not to mention their behaviour. Maybe if he wishes to remind people the true essence of the Method, or to show them its potential results, then the optimal strategy for Day-Lewis is to just start making additional movies. Surely we could all support that idea.
