It’s been a long while since the public caught a glimpse of the acclaimed actor Daniel Day-Lewis. Following his statement in 2017 declaring he would cease to work as an actor, just before the debut of Phantom Thread, the actor withdrew from the spotlight. However, during his hiatus, his legend expanded further.
The Mythos of His Method
Primarily, this legend centers on his favored approach to roles. As someone who famously immerses himself in his characters – for example, during the Lincoln biopic, he had the director call him “Mr President” throughout the shoot – audiences has grown more fascinated with how he works. Did he actually sent texts to Sally Field in character as Lincoln? Was it accurate that he only eat animals he’d killed during The Last of the Mohicans? Did he demand being spoon-fed for My Left Foot?
Madness in their method: has the public lost interest with actorly excess?
Now, Daniel Day-Lewis is back in the limelight, with some hesitation, promoting his latest movie Anemone. He is using this to express his anger regarding how method acting is viewed. “I am somewhat annoyed these days when I hear all kinds of people talking carelessly and saying things like ‘gone full method’, which I think suggests that a person’s behaving like a lunatic in a drastic way,” he stated to the New York Times. “Everyone often concentrate on superficial details of the work, and those details always seem to involve some form of self-punishment or an experience that imposes upon oneself a severe discomfort or psychological strain. But of course, in the life of an actor, it has to mainly focus on the internal work.”
A World Full of Followers
To be honest, this sounds as if Day-Lewis has emerged from seclusion and found himself aghast at the world that has been created mirroring his methods. When you are regarded as one of the greatest performers to ever work, and your approach involves striking a prop until you break your nose (in Gangs of New York) or enduring two days in isolation without food or water (for In the Name of the Father), it’s natural that other actors will want to fill that vacuum by trying to mimic their idol.
Essentially, we exist in an environment full of imperfect imitators of Day-Lewis who want nothing more than to show the world the extensive degree of dedication they put into their roles. At the shallow end of this trend 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 transformed into 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 (in Suicide Squad) through sending “disturbing” gifts to fellow cast members. These, according to various accounts, range from deceased animals to intimate objects and personal hygiene products, although Leto denied those worst excesses. Then, of course, there is Jim Carrey, who immersed himself so fully as Andy Kaufman for Man on the Moon that filmmakers succeeded in creating a full-length documentary out of B-roll of him causing difficulties to the utmost for everyone around him.
Contemporary Followers of the Method
The main practitioner of the Method currently would appear to be Jeremy Strong (once Day-Lewis’s assistant), whose process while filming Succession was so rigorously detailed that it became the subject of a derisive New Yorker profile, including statements from individuals who were either concerned about his conduct (“The toll on himself concerns me,” remarked co-star Brian Cox) or annoyed beyond all measure by it (“I recall [him] making everyone else roll their eyes,” said an unnamed co-star).
The actor says he ‘never intended to retire, truly’
There are numerous additional cases. Andrew Garfield abstained from sex over half a year while preparing for Silence. Leonardo DiCaprio rested inside an animal carcass for The Revenant. It’s quite possible that actor Austin Butler continues to talk in the style of Elvis, three years after the movie’s release. All of this, to some extent, is meant to invoke the dedication with which Day-Lewis approaches his craft.
An Admirable But Uphill Battle
Moreover, while his fightback against method detractors could be commendable, a brief promotional cycle might not be enough to alter perceptions, not to mention their behaviour. Perhaps 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. Surely we could all support that idea.
