It’s been a long while since the public saw or heard from Daniel Day-Lewis. Following his statement in 2017 declaring he would no longer work as an actor, just before the release of Phantom Thread, Day-Lewis withdrew from the spotlight. However, during his hiatus, his legend has only grown.
The Legend of His Acting Method
Primarily, this legend centers on his preferred approach to roles. As someone who famously immerses himself in his characters – for instance, while filming Lincoln, he had the director call him “Mr. President” throughout the shoot – audiences has become more fascinated with how he works. Is it true he really send messages to co-star Sally Field as Abraham Lincoln? Did he consumed solely animals he’d killed during The Last of the Mohicans? And did he insist on being spoon-fed for My Left Foot?
Madness in their method: has the public fallen out of love with over-the-top performances?
Currently, Daniel Day-Lewis is back to public attention, with some hesitation, for his new film Anemone. He is using this to vocalise his anger at how the Method technique is viewed. “I am somewhat annoyed nowadays to hear various individuals talking carelessly and using phrases like ‘fully embraced the Method’, which seems is meant to imply that a person’s acting insane in an extreme fashion,” he told the New York Times. “Everyone often concentrate on the less important aspects of acting, and those details typically include some form of self-flagellation or an experience that causes a severe discomfort or psychological strain. However, in the career of an actor, it must principally be about the inner transformation.”
An Industry of Imitators
To be honest, it appears as if Day-Lewis has emerged from his retreat and found himself aghast at the world that has been created in his image. When you are widely considered one of the greatest performers in history, and your process involves striking a prop to the point of injury (for Gangs of New York) or enduring two days in isolation deprived of sustenance (during In the Name of the Father), it’s natural that other actors will want to fill that vacuum by imitating their idol.
Essentially, we exist in an environment full of half-cocked imitators of Day-Lewis who strive only to demonstrate the extensive degree of dedication they put into a character. At the shallow end of this trend we have people like Lady Gaga, who was determined to earn an Academy Award with House of Gucci that she dedicated the entire promotion trying to convince everyone that she transformed into an Italian native over 18 months in preparation.
Additionally, there is Jared Leto, who chose to immerse himself in the character of the Joker (in Suicide Squad) by sending “disturbing” gifts to his castmates. These, according to various accounts, included dead pigs and rats to intimate objects and used condoms, though the actor refuted those worst excesses. Then, naturally, there is Jim Carrey, who immersed himself so fully as Andy Kaufman during Man on the Moon that they succeeded to get a feature-length documentary out of B-roll of him causing difficulties as impossible as he could for everyone around him.
Contemporary Method Practitioners
The main practitioner of the Method at the moment would appear to be Jeremy Strong (once Day-Lewis’s assistant), whose approach while filming Succession was so laboriously intensive that it became the subject of a derisive New Yorker profile, including statements from individuals who were worried about his conduct (“It’s the cost to himself concerns me,” said Brian Cox) or annoyed beyond all measure by it (“I recall him causing everyone else roll their eyes,” stated an unnamed co-star).
Daniel Day-Lewis claims he ‘never intended to retire, really’
We have so many other examples. Andrew Garfield went celibate for six months while preparing for Silence. Leonardo DiCaprio rested inside a dead animal during The Revenant. It’s quite possible that Austin Butler still speaks like Elvis Presley, three years after the movie’s release. Each of these instances, in part, aims to evoke the dedication with which Day-Lewis approaches his craft.
A Noble But Uphill Battle
Moreover, while his fightback against method detractors might be noble, a short publicity tour might not be enough to alter perceptions, not to mention their behaviour. Perhaps if he wants to make audiences recall the true essence of the Method, or to demonstrate its potential results, then Day-Lewis’s best bet is to simply start making additional movies. Surely we could all support that idea.
