It’s been quite some time since anyone saw or heard from the acclaimed actor Daniel Day-Lewis. Following his announcement in 2017 that he would cease to work as an actor, just before the release of The Phantom Thread, Day-Lewis withdrew from the spotlight. However, during his hiatus, his reputation expanded further.
The Legend Surrounding His Acting Method
Largely, this legend centers on his preferred approach to roles. As someone known for immerses himself in his characters – for instance, during the Lincoln biopic, reportedly asked the director address him as “Mr President” for the entire production – audiences has grown more fascinated with his process. Is it true he really send messages to co-star Sally Field in character as Lincoln? Was it accurate that he consumed solely animals he’d killed for The Last of the Mohicans? And did he insist on receiving food via spoon while filming My Left Foot?
Madness in their method: have we fallen out of love with actorly excess?
Currently, Day-Lewis has returned in the limelight, with some hesitation, for his new film Anemone. And he is taking this chance to express his frustration at how the Method technique is viewed. “I am somewhat annoyed these days when I hear various individuals gobbling off and using phrases like ‘gone full method’, which seems suggests that a person’s behaving like a lunatic in an extreme fashion,” he stated to the New York Times. “People often concentrate on the less important aspects of acting, and these elements typically include some form of self-punishment or an experience that imposes upon oneself extreme unease or mental instability. However, in the career for a performer, it must principally be about the internal work.”
A World Full of Followers
To be honest, this sounds as if the actor has emerged from seclusion only to discover shocked by the acting community that has been created mirroring his methods. If you’re widely considered among the best performers in history, and your process includes striking a prop to the point of injury (for Gangs of New York) or enduring 48 hours in isolation without food or water (during In the Name of the Father), it’s natural that other actors will want to emulate that example by trying to mimic their idol.
Essentially, we exist in an environment full of imperfect Day-Lewis impersonators who strive only to demonstrate the sheer amount of dedication they invest in their roles. On the milder side of the pool there are performers such as Lady Gaga, who was determined to win an Oscar for House of Gucci that she spent the entire promotion trying to convince everyone that she became functionally Italian for a year and a half as preparation.
Then we have Jared Leto, who decided to deeply embed himself into the role as the Joker (for Suicide Squad) by sending “disturbing” presents to his castmates. These items, according to various accounts, included deceased animals to intimate objects and personal hygiene products, though Leto denied the most extreme claims. Then, naturally, 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 from behind-the-scenes footage of him making life to the utmost for everyone around him.
Contemporary Followers of the Method
The main practitioner of the Method at the moment seems to be Jeremy Strong (once Day-Lewis’s assistant), whose approach while filming Succession was so rigorously detailed that it formed the basis of a critical magazine feature, including statements from people who were worried for his behaviour (“It’s the cost to himself concerns me,” said co-star Brian Cox) or extremely irritated by his actions (“I recall him causing others roll their eyes,” stated an unnamed co-star).
The actor claims he ‘did not plan to stop acting, truly’
We have numerous additional cases. Andrew Garfield went celibate for six months while preparing for Silence. Leonardo DiCaprio rested inside a dead animal for The Revenant. There’s a fighting chance that Austin Butler continues to talk like Elvis Presley, three years after the movie’s release. All of this, in part, is meant to invoke the dedication in which Day-Lewis takes his work.
An Admirable Yet Challenging Fight
Moreover, while his fightback to critics of the Method might be noble, a short publicity tour may prove insufficient to alter perceptions, let alone their behaviour. Maybe if he wishes to remind people the true essence of the Method, or to show them what it can achieve, then the optimal strategy for Day-Lewis is to simply start making more films. Certainly everyone would support that idea.
