It has been a long while since anyone caught a glimpse of Daniel Day-Lewis. After he statement in 2017 that he would no longer work as an actor, prior to the debut of The Phantom Thread, the actor withdrew from the spotlight. Yet, in his absence, his legend expanded further.
The Mythos Surrounding His Acting Method
Largely, this reputation revolves around his preferred style of working. As someone who famously disappears into his characters – for example, during 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 only eat animals he’d killed for The Last of the Mohicans? Did he demand receiving food via spoon for My Left Foot?
Madness in their method: has the public lost interest with over-the-top performances?
Now, Daniel Day-Lewis has returned to public attention, somewhat reluctantly, promoting his latest movie Anemone. And he is taking this chance to express his frustration regarding how method acting is viewed. “I’m a little cross these days to hear all kinds of people talking carelessly and using phrases like ‘gone full method’, which seems suggests that someone is acting insane in an extreme fashion,” he stated to a major publication. “People tends to focus on the less important details of the work, and those details always seem to involve some form of self-punishment or a situation that causes a severe discomfort or mental instability. However, in the career for a performer, it must mainly focus on the internal work.”
A World Full of Followers
Frankly, it appears like the actor has emerged from his retreat and found himself shocked by the world that has developed mirroring his methods. If you’re widely considered one of the greatest actors in history, and your approach involves striking a prop to the point of injury (for Gangs of New York) or spending 48 hours in solitary confinement deprived of sustenance (during In the Name of the Father), it’s natural that fellow performers will want to emulate that example by imitating their idol.
In other words, we now live in an environment populated by imperfect Day-Lewis impersonators who strive only to show the world the sheer amount of effort they invest in their roles. On the milder side of the pool there are performers such as Lady Gaga, who was so desperate to win an Oscar with House of Gucci that she dedicated the entire promotion trying to convince everyone that she became functionally Italian 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 “disturbing” presents to his castmates. These items, according to various accounts, included dead pigs and rats to intimate objects and personal hygiene products, though Leto denied those worst excesses. Then, naturally, we have Jim Carrey, who went so deep as Andy Kaufman during Man on the Moon that filmmakers literally managed in creating a full-length documentary from behind-the-scenes footage of him making life to the utmost for his colleagues.
Contemporary Method Practitioners
The foremost Method Guy at the moment seems to be Jeremy Strong (once an assistant to Day-Lewis), whose approach during Succession was so laboriously intensive that it became the basis of a critical New Yorker profile, including statements from individuals who were either concerned about his conduct (“The toll to himself concerns me,” remarked Brian Cox) or annoyed beyond all measure by his actions (“I recall him causing everyone else roll their eyes,” stated an unnamed co-star).
The actor claims he ‘never intended to retire, truly’
We have so many other examples. Andrew Garfield abstained from sex over half a year while preparing for Silence. Leonardo DiCaprio rested inside an animal carcass during The Revenant. There’s a fighting chance that actor Austin Butler still speaks like Elvis Presley, three years after the movie’s release. Each of these instances, to some extent, aims to evoke the seriousness with which Day-Lewis takes his work.
A Noble Yet Challenging Battle
Moreover, although his rebuttal to critics of the Method could be commendable, a brief promotional cycle may prove insufficient to change anyone’s mind, let alone their behaviour. Maybe if he wants to remind people the true essence of the Method, or to demonstrate what it can achieve, then Day-Lewis’s best bet is to just start making more films. Certainly everyone would support that idea.
