🔗 Share this article

It’s been a long while since the public saw or heard from the acclaimed actor Daniel Day-Lewis. Following his statement in 2017 declaring he would no longer work as an actor, prior to the release of The Phantom Thread, the actor quietly faded from view. Yet, during his hiatus, his reputation has only grown.

The Legend of His Method

Largely, this reputation revolves around his preferred approach to roles. Being an actor known for disappears into the roles he plays – for example, while filming Lincoln, he had the director call him “Mr. President” throughout the shoot – audiences has become more fascinated with how he works. Is it true he actually sent texts to Sally Field as Abraham Lincoln? Was it accurate that he consumed solely game he hunted during Last of the Mohicans? And did he demand being spoon-fed for My Left Foot?

Extreme acting methods: have we fallen out of love with over-the-top performances?

Now, Day-Lewis has returned in the limelight, with some hesitation, for his new film Anemone. And he is taking this chance to vocalise his frustration at how the Method technique is perceived. “I’m a little cross these days when I hear various individuals talking carelessly and using phrases like ‘fully embraced the Method’, which seems is meant to imply that someone is behaving like a lunatic in a drastic way,” he stated to the New York Times. “Everyone tends to focus on the less important details of the work, and these elements typically include some sort of self-punishment or an experience that imposes upon oneself a severe discomfort or mental instability. However, in the life of an actor, it must mainly focus on the inner transformation.”

An Industry of Imitators

To be honest, it appears as if 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 regarded as one of the greatest actors to ever work, and your process includes headbutting a dummy to the point of injury (for Gangs of New York) or spending two days in isolation deprived of sustenance (during In the Name of the Father), it’s natural that other actors will attempt to emulate that example by imitating their idol.

Essentially, we now live in an environment populated by half-cocked imitators of Day-Lewis who want nothing more than to show the world the sheer amount of effort they invest in a character. At the shallow end of the pool there are performers such as Lady Gaga, who was determined to earn an Academy Award with House of Gucci that she dedicated the whole campaign trying to convince everyone that she transformed into an Italian native over 18 months in preparation.

Additionally, there is Jared Leto, who chose to deeply embed himself into the role of the Joker (in Suicide Squad) by sending “horrifying” gifts to fellow cast members. These, depending on who you ask, included deceased animals to intimate objects and personal hygiene products, although Leto denied the most extreme claims. And then, of course, there is Jim Carrey, who went so deep into Andy Kaufman during Man on the Moon that filmmakers literally managed to get a feature-length documentary from behind-the-scenes footage of him making life to the utmost for his colleagues.

Contemporary Method Practitioners

The main practitioner of the Method currently would appear to be Jeremy Strong (formerly an assistant to Day-Lewis), whose approach during Succession was so rigorously detailed that it formed the basis of a critical magazine feature, full of quotes from individuals who were either concerned for his behaviour (“It’s the cost to himself concerns me,” said Brian Cox) or extremely irritated by it (“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 numerous additional cases. Andrew Garfield abstained from sex for six months while preparing for Silence. Leonardo DiCaprio rested inside an animal carcass for The Revenant. It’s quite possible that Austin Butler continues to talk in the style of Elvis, three years after that film came out. Each of these instances, in part, is meant to invoke the dedication with which Day-Lewis approaches his craft.

An Admirable Yet Challenging Fight

Moreover, although his rebuttal to critics of the Method might be noble, a brief promotional cycle may prove insufficient to alter perceptions, let alone their practices. Perhaps if he wishes to make audiences recall the true essence of the Method, or to demonstrate what it can achieve, then Day-Lewis’s best bet is to just start making additional movies. Surely everyone would support that idea.