It’s been a long while since the public caught a glimpse of Daniel Day-Lewis. Following his statement in 2017 declaring he would cease to pursue acting, just before the debut of Phantom Thread, Day-Lewis withdrew from the spotlight. Yet, in his absence, his reputation has only grown.
The Legend of His Method
Largely, this reputation revolves around his favored style of working. Being an actor who famously immerses himself in his characters – for instance, while filming Lincoln, he had Steven Spielberg address him as “Mr President” for the entire production – the world has grown more fascinated with his process. Is it true he really send texts to Sally Field as Abraham Lincoln? Did he consumed solely animals he’d killed during Last of the Mohicans? Did he insist on receiving food via spoon while filming My Left Foot?
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Now, Day-Lewis is back in the limelight, with some hesitation, promoting his latest movie Anemone. He is taking this chance to vocalise his frustration regarding how method acting is perceived. “I am somewhat annoyed these days to hear various individuals gobbling off and saying things like ‘gone full method’, which I think is meant to imply that someone is acting insane in a drastic way,” he stated to the New York Times. “People often concentrate on superficial details of the work, and these elements typically include some sort of self-flagellation or an experience that causes extreme unease or mental instability. But of course, in the life of an actor, it has to principally be about the internal work.”
A World Full of Followers
To be honest, this sounds like the actor has emerged from his retreat only to discover aghast at the world that has developed mirroring his methods. When you are widely considered among the best actors in history, and your process involves headbutting a dummy to the point of injury (for Gangs of New York) or spending two days in isolation without food or water (for In the Name of the Father), then it stands to reason that fellow performers will want to fill that vacuum by trying to mimic their idol.
Essentially, we exist in a landscape full of imperfect imitators of Day-Lewis who want nothing more than to show the world the extensive degree of dedication they invest in their roles. At the shallow end of the pool we have people like Lady Gaga, who was determined to earn an Academy Award with House of Gucci that she spent the whole campaign attempting to persuade people that she transformed into an Italian native for a year and a half in preparation.
Then we have Jared Leto, who decided to immerse himself in the character as the Joker (for Suicide Squad) through sending “disturbing” gifts to his castmates. These, according to various accounts, included dead pigs and rats to intimate objects and used condoms, though the actor refuted the most extreme claims. And then, of course, we have Jim Carrey, who immersed himself so fully into Andy Kaufman for Man on the Moon that filmmakers succeeded to get a full-length documentary from behind-the-scenes footage of him making life to the utmost for his colleagues.
The Modern Followers of the Method
The main practitioner of the Method currently seems to be Jeremy Strong (once Day-Lewis’s assistant), whose approach during Succession was so laboriously intensive that it became the basis of a derisive New Yorker profile, full of quotes from people who were either concerned for his behaviour (“It’s the cost on himself that worries me,” remarked co-star Brian Cox) or annoyed beyond all measure by his actions (“I remember [him] making everyone else to react with exasperation,” said an anonymous cast member).
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There are numerous additional cases. Andrew Garfield went celibate over half a year while preparing for Silence. Leonardo DiCaprio rested inside a dead animal during The Revenant. It’s quite possible that Austin Butler continues to talk in the style of Elvis, years following that film came out. Each of these instances, in part, is meant to invoke the dedication with which Day-Lewis approaches his work.
A Noble 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, not to mention their behaviour. Maybe if he wants to make audiences recall the true essence of the Method, or to demonstrate its potential results, then the optimal strategy for Day-Lewis is to simply begin producing additional movies. Certainly we could all get behind that.
