It has been a long while since anyone saw or heard from Daniel Day-Lewis. After he announcement in 2017 that he would no longer work as an actor, just before the release of Phantom Thread, the actor quietly faded from view. However, during his hiatus, his legend expanded further.
The Mythos of His Method
Primarily, this legend revolves around his favored style of working. As someone who famously 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 increasingly obsessed with his process. Did he actually sent texts to Sally Field in character as Lincoln? Was it accurate that he only eat game he hunted during The Last of the Mohicans? And did he demand being spoon-fed while filming My Left Foot?
Madness in their method: have we fallen out of love with over-the-top performances?
Currently, Daniel Day-Lewis has returned in the limelight, with some hesitation, promoting his latest movie Anemone. And he is using this to vocalise his frustration at how the Method technique is viewed. “I’m a little cross these days to hear all kinds of people talking carelessly and saying things like ‘fully embraced the Method’, which seems suggests that someone is acting insane in a drastic way,” he told the New York Times. “People often concentrate on the less important details of the work, and those details always seem to involve some sort of self-punishment or a situation that causes a severe discomfort or psychological strain. But of course, in the life of an actor, it must mainly focus on the inner transformation.”
A World Full of Followers
To be honest, it appears as if Day-Lewis has come out from his retreat and found himself aghast at the world that has been created mirroring his methods. If you’re widely considered 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 deprived of sustenance (during In the Name of the Father), then it stands to reason that fellow performers will attempt to fill that vacuum by imitating your hero.
In other words, we exist in an environment populated by half-cocked imitators of Day-Lewis who want nothing more than to demonstrate the extensive degree of effort they put into their roles. On the milder side of this trend there are performers such as Lady Gaga, who was so desperate to win an Oscar for House of Gucci that she spent the whole campaign trying to convince everyone that she became an Italian native for a year and a half as preparation.
Then we have Jared Leto, who chose to immerse himself in the character of the Joker (in Suicide Squad) by sending “horrifying” presents to fellow cast members. These, according to various accounts, included deceased animals to intimate objects and personal hygiene products, though 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 to get a feature-length documentary out of B-roll of him causing difficulties to the utmost for his colleagues.
The Modern 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 rigorously detailed that it formed the basis of a derisive magazine feature, including statements from individuals who were either concerned about his conduct (“It’s the cost on himself concerns me,” remarked Brian Cox) or annoyed beyond all measure by it (“I recall [him] making others to react with exasperation,” said an anonymous cast member).
Daniel Day-Lewis says he ‘did not plan to retire, really’
We have numerous additional cases. Andrew Garfield abstained from sex over half a year for Silence. Leonardo DiCaprio slept in a dead animal during The Revenant. It’s quite possible that actor Austin Butler continues to talk in the style of Elvis, three years after that film came out. Each of these instances, in part, aims to evoke the dedication in which Day-Lewis approaches his craft.
A Noble Yet Challenging Battle
And, while his fightback against method detractors could be commendable, a short publicity tour might not be enough to change anyone’s mind, not to mention their behaviour. Perhaps if he wishes to remind people the true essence of the Method, or to demonstrate its potential results, then the optimal strategy for Day-Lewis is to just start making additional movies. Surely everyone would support that idea.
