It’s been quite some time since anyone saw or heard from Daniel Day-Lewis. After he announcement in 2017 that he would cease to work as an actor, prior to the debut of Phantom Thread, Day-Lewis withdrew from the spotlight. Yet, in his absence, his reputation has only grown.
The Mythos of His Acting Method
Largely, this legend centers on his favored approach to roles. As someone known for immerses himself in the roles he plays – for instance, during the Lincoln biopic, he had the director call him “Mr President” for the entire production – audiences has grown increasingly obsessed with his process. Is it true he actually sent texts to Sally Field in character as Lincoln? Did he consumed solely game he hunted during Last of the Mohicans? Did he demand being spoon-fed for My Left Foot?
Madness in their method: have we fallen out of love with actorly excess?
Currently, Day-Lewis is back to public attention, with some hesitation, promoting his latest movie Anemone. He is taking this chance to express his anger regarding how method acting is viewed. “I’m a little cross these days to hear various individuals talking carelessly and saying things like ‘gone full method’, which I think suggests that a person’s acting insane in a drastic way,” he told a major publication. “People tends to focus on superficial details of the work, and those details always seem to involve some sort of self-punishment or an experience that causes extreme unease or mental instability. However, in the life of an actor, it has to principally be about the inner transformation.”
An Industry Full of Followers
To be honest, this sounds like the actor has emerged from seclusion only to discover shocked by the world that has been created in his image. If you’re widely considered one of the greatest performers in history, and your process includes headbutting a dummy until you break your nose (in Gangs of New York) or enduring 48 hours in isolation without food or water (for In the Name of the Father), it’s natural that other actors will attempt to emulate that example by trying to mimic their idol.
In other words, we exist in an environment populated by imperfect Day-Lewis impersonators who want nothing more than to show the world the sheer amount of dedication they put into a character. 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 spent the whole campaign attempting to persuade people that she became functionally Italian over 18 months in preparation.
Then we have Jared Leto, who decided to immerse himself in the character of the Joker (for Suicide Squad) through sending “horrifying” gifts to fellow cast members. These, depending on who you ask, range from deceased animals to anal beads and used condoms, though Leto denied those worst excesses. And then, of course, there is Jim Carrey, who went so deep as Andy Kaufman for Man on the Moon that filmmakers literally managed to get a feature-length documentary out of B-roll of him making life to the utmost for his colleagues.
Contemporary Followers of the Method
The main Method Guy at the moment would appear to be Jeremy Strong (formerly an assistant to Day-Lewis), whose approach during Succession was so laboriously intensive that it became the subject of a derisive magazine feature, including statements from individuals who were either concerned about his conduct (“The toll to himself concerns me,” said Brian Cox) or annoyed beyond all measure by it (“I recall him causing everyone else roll their eyes,” stated an unnamed co-star).
Daniel Day-Lewis claims he ‘did not plan to stop acting, really’
We have numerous additional cases. Andrew Garfield went celibate over half a year for Silence. Leonardo DiCaprio slept in an animal carcass during The Revenant. It’s quite possible that actor Austin Butler continues to talk in the style of Elvis, years following the movie’s release. Each of these instances, to some extent, is meant to invoke the seriousness with which Day-Lewis takes his work.
An Admirable But Uphill Fight
And, while his fightback to critics of the Method might be noble, a short publicity tour might not be enough to change anyone’s mind, let alone their behaviour. Perhaps 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 simply start making additional movies. Surely we could all get behind that.