It’s been quite some time since anyone caught a glimpse of the acclaimed actor 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, in his absence, his reputation expanded further.
The Legend Surrounding His Acting Method
Largely, this reputation revolves around his favored style of working. Being an actor known for disappears into the roles he plays – for instance, while filming Lincoln, reportedly asked Steven Spielberg address him as “Mr. President” for the entire production – audiences has become more fascinated with how he works. Did he actually sent messages to co-star Sally Field in character as Lincoln? Was it accurate that he consumed solely game he hunted for The Last of the Mohicans? And did he demand receiving food via spoon for My Left Foot?
Extreme acting methods: has the public lost interest with over-the-top performances?
Now, Day-Lewis is back to public attention, somewhat reluctantly, for his new film Anemone. He is taking this chance to vocalise his frustration regarding how method acting is viewed. “I’m a little cross nowadays to hear all kinds of people talking carelessly and saying things like ‘gone full method’, which I think suggests that a person’s acting insane in an extreme fashion,” he stated to the New York Times. “People often concentrate on the less important details of the work, and those details typically include some sort of self-flagellation or a situation that causes extreme unease or mental instability. But of course, in the life for a performer, it has to principally be about the inner transformation.”
An Industry Full of Followers
Frankly, it appears as if the actor has come out from seclusion and found himself aghast at the acting community that has developed in his image. If you’re widely considered among the best actors in history, and your process involves headbutting a dummy until you break your nose (in Gangs of New York) or spending two days in isolation deprived of sustenance (during In the Name of the Father), then it stands to reason that fellow performers will want to emulate that example by trying to mimic your hero.
Essentially, we now live in an environment populated by half-cocked imitators of Day-Lewis who strive only to demonstrate the sheer amount of dedication they put into their roles. At the shallow end of the pool we have people like Lady Gaga, who was determined to earn an Academy Award for House of Gucci that she dedicated the whole campaign trying to convince everyone that she became functionally Italian over 18 months in preparation.
Additionally, there is Jared Leto, who decided to deeply embed himself into the role of the Joker (in Suicide Squad) through sending “disturbing” gifts to fellow cast members. These, according to various accounts, included dead pigs and rats to intimate objects and personal hygiene products, though Leto denied those worst excesses. And then, of course, we have Jim Carrey, who immersed himself so fully into Andy Kaufman for Man on the Moon that they literally managed in creating a feature-length documentary out of B-roll of him making life to the utmost for his colleagues.
Contemporary Method Practitioners
The main practitioner of the Method currently would appear to be Jeremy Strong (formerly Day-Lewis’s assistant), whose process while filming Succession was so laboriously intensive that it became the subject of a critical New Yorker profile, full of quotes from individuals who were worried for his behaviour (“The toll to himself that worries me,” remarked co-star Brian Cox) or extremely irritated by his actions (“I recall him causing everyone else roll their eyes,” stated an anonymous cast member).
Daniel Day-Lewis says he ‘did not plan to stop acting, truly’
We have numerous additional cases. Andrew Garfield abstained from sex over half a year for Silence. Leonardo DiCaprio slept in a dead animal during The Revenant. It’s quite possible that actor Austin Butler continues to talk in the style of Elvis, years following that film came out. All of this, in part, aims to evoke the dedication in which Day-Lewis approaches his work.
An Admirable But Uphill Battle
And, while his fightback against method detractors might be noble, a brief promotional cycle may prove insufficient to change anyone’s mind, let alone their behaviour. Maybe if he wishes to make audiences recall what method acting is, or to demonstrate its potential results, then the optimal strategy for Day-Lewis is to just begin producing more films. Surely everyone would get behind that.
