It has been quite some time since anyone caught a glimpse of Daniel Day-Lewis. After he announcement in 2017 declaring he would cease to pursue acting, prior to the debut of The Phantom Thread, Day-Lewis quietly faded from view. However, in his absence, his reputation expanded further.
The Legend Surrounding His Method
Largely, this legend revolves around his preferred approach to roles. Being an actor who famously disappears into his characters – for instance, while filming the Lincoln biopic, he had Steven Spielberg call him “Mr. President” for the entire production – audiences has become more fascinated with his process. Is it true he really send texts to Sally Field as Abraham Lincoln? Did he consumed solely game he hunted during The Last of the Mohicans? Did he insist on receiving food via spoon while filming My Left Foot?
Extreme acting methods: has the public lost interest with over-the-top performances?
Now, Day-Lewis has returned in the limelight, with some hesitation, for his new film Anemone. He is using this to express his anger at how the Method technique is perceived. “I am somewhat annoyed these days when I hear all kinds of people gobbling off and using phrases like ‘gone full method’, which seems is meant to imply that someone is acting insane in an extreme fashion,” he stated to a major publication. “Everyone tends to focus on superficial aspects of acting, and those details always seem to involve some sort of self-flagellation or an experience that causes extreme unease or psychological strain. However, in the life of an actor, it has to mainly focus on the inner transformation.”
An Industry of Imitators
Frankly, it appears as if Day-Lewis has come out from seclusion only to discover shocked by the acting community that has been created in his image. If you’re widely considered among the best actors in history, and your process involves striking a prop to the point of injury (for Gangs of New York) or spending two days in solitary confinement without food or water (for In the Name of the Father), then it stands to reason that other actors will want to emulate that example by trying to mimic your hero.
In other words, we exist in a landscape populated by half-cocked imitators of Day-Lewis who strive only to demonstrate the extensive degree of effort they invest in their roles. At the shallow end of this trend there are performers such as Lady Gaga, who was so desperate to earn an Academy Award for House of Gucci that she dedicated the entire promotion attempting to persuade people that she became an Italian native for a year and a half as preparation.
Additionally, there is Jared Leto, who chose to deeply embed himself into the role as the Joker (for Suicide Squad) through sending “horrifying” gifts to fellow cast members. These items, depending on who you ask, included dead pigs and rats to intimate objects and used condoms, although Leto denied those worst excesses. Then, of course, we have Jim Carrey, who went so deep into Andy Kaufman for Man on the Moon that they literally managed in creating a full-length documentary out of B-roll of him causing difficulties to the utmost for his colleagues.
The Modern Method Practitioners
The main Method Guy currently would appear to be Jeremy Strong (formerly an assistant to Day-Lewis), whose approach during Succession was so rigorously detailed that it became the subject of a critical magazine feature, full of quotes from individuals who were worried about his conduct (“It’s the cost to himself concerns me,” remarked Brian Cox) or extremely irritated by his actions (“I recall [him] making others roll their eyes,” stated an anonymous cast member).
Daniel Day-Lewis says he ‘did not plan to stop acting, truly’
There are so many other examples. Andrew Garfield abstained from sex over half a year for Silence. Leonardo DiCaprio slept in a dead animal for The Revenant. It’s quite possible that actor Austin Butler still speaks in the style of Elvis, years following that film came out. Each of these instances, in part, is meant to invoke the seriousness in which Day-Lewis takes his craft.
A Noble But Uphill Battle
And, 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 wishes to make audiences recall what method acting is, or to demonstrate its potential results, then Day-Lewis’s best bet is to simply start making more films. Surely everyone would support that idea.
