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 work as an actor, just before the debut of Phantom Thread, Day-Lewis quietly faded from view. Yet, in his absence, his reputation expanded further.
The Mythos of His Acting Method
Largely, this reputation revolves around his preferred style of working. Being an actor who famously immerses himself in his characters – for example, while filming Lincoln, he had the director address him as “Mr President” throughout the shoot – the world has become more fascinated with his process. Is it true he really send texts to Sally Field as Abraham Lincoln? Was it accurate that he consumed solely animals he’d killed for The Last of the Mohicans? And did he insist on being spoon-fed for My Left Foot?
Madness in their method: has the public lost interest with actorly excess?
Currently, Daniel Day-Lewis is back to public attention, somewhat reluctantly, promoting his latest movie Anemone. He is using this to vocalise his frustration regarding 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 ‘fully embraced the Method’, which I think suggests that someone is behaving like a lunatic in a drastic way,” he told the New York Times. “Everyone often concentrate on the less important details of the work, and those details always seem to involve some sort of self-flagellation or a situation that causes a severe discomfort or mental instability. But of course, in the career for a performer, it must principally be about the internal work.”
A World Full of Followers
Frankly, this sounds like the actor 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 one of the greatest performers in history, and your process involves headbutting a dummy to the point of injury (in Gangs of New York) or enduring 48 hours in solitary confinement deprived of sustenance (during In the Name of the Father), then it stands to reason that other actors will want to emulate that example by trying to mimic their idol.
Essentially, we now live in an environment full of half-cocked Day-Lewis impersonators who strive only to show the world the sheer amount of dedication they invest in their roles. On the milder side of this trend we have people like Lady Gaga, who was determined to earn an Academy Award with House of Gucci that she spent the entire promotion trying to convince everyone that she transformed into functionally Italian over 18 months as preparation.
Additionally, there is Jared Leto, who chose to immerse himself in the character as the Joker (in Suicide Squad) through sending “horrifying” presents to his castmates. These, depending on who you ask, range from deceased animals to anal beads and used condoms, although Leto denied the most extreme claims. And then, naturally, there is Jim Carrey, who immersed himself so fully into Andy Kaufman during Man on the Moon that filmmakers succeeded in creating a full-length documentary out of B-roll of him making life as impossible as he could for his colleagues.
The Modern Followers of the Method
The main Method Guy currently seems to be Jeremy Strong (once Day-Lewis’s assistant), whose process while filming Succession was so rigorously detailed that it formed the basis of a critical magazine feature, including statements from individuals who were either concerned for his behaviour (“It’s the cost on himself that worries me,” remarked Brian Cox) or extremely irritated by it (“I remember [him] making others roll their eyes,” stated an unnamed co-star).
Daniel Day-Lewis claims he ‘did not plan to retire, really’
We have numerous additional cases. Andrew Garfield went celibate over half a year for Silence. Leonardo DiCaprio rested inside a dead animal during The Revenant. There’s a fighting chance that actor Austin Butler continues to talk 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.
An Admirable But Uphill Battle
And, although his rebuttal to critics of the Method might be noble, a brief promotional cycle might not be enough to alter perceptions, not to mention their behaviour. Perhaps if he wishes to remind people what method acting is, or to demonstrate what it can achieve, then Day-Lewis’s best bet is to simply begin producing more films. Surely everyone would get behind that.
