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It’s been a long while since anyone caught a glimpse of the acclaimed actor Daniel Day-Lewis. Following his statement in 2017 declaring he would no longer pursue acting, just before the release of The Phantom Thread, the actor withdrew from the spotlight. However, during his hiatus, his reputation expanded further.

The Legend of His Method

Primarily, this reputation centers on his preferred approach to roles. Being an actor who famously immerses himself in his characters – for example, during the Lincoln biopic, he had Steven Spielberg call him “Mr. President” throughout the shoot – audiences has become increasingly obsessed with how he works. Is it true he actually sent messages to co-star Sally Field as Abraham Lincoln? Was it accurate that he only eat game he hunted for The Last of the Mohicans? Did he demand receiving food via spoon for My Left Foot?

Madness in their method: has the public lost interest with over-the-top performances?

Currently, Day-Lewis has returned to public attention, somewhat reluctantly, promoting his latest movie Anemone. And he is using this to vocalise his frustration at how method acting is perceived. “I’m a little cross these days to hear all kinds of people gobbling off and saying things like ‘gone full method’, which seems suggests that someone is behaving like a lunatic in an extreme fashion,” he stated to the New York Times. “Everyone tends to focus on superficial aspects of acting, and these elements always seem to involve some form of self-flagellation or a situation that imposes upon oneself extreme unease or psychological strain. But of course, in the life for a performer, it must principally be about the inner transformation.”

A World Full of Followers

Frankly, this sounds like Day-Lewis has emerged from his retreat only to discover aghast at the acting community that has been created mirroring his methods. When you are widely considered one of the greatest performers in history, and your approach involves striking a prop until you break your nose (for Gangs of New York) or enduring two days in solitary confinement without food or water (for In the Name of the Father), then it stands to reason that other actors will want to emulate that example by trying to mimic their idol.

Essentially, we exist in a landscape populated by imperfect Day-Lewis impersonators who strive only to show the world the sheer amount of dedication they invest in their roles. At the shallow end of this trend we have people like Lady Gaga, who was so desperate to earn an Academy Award with House of Gucci that she dedicated the entire promotion trying to convince everyone that she transformed into functionally Italian over 18 months as preparation.

Then we have Jared Leto, who decided to deeply embed himself in the character as the Joker (for Suicide Squad) through sending “disturbing” presents to fellow cast members. These, according to various accounts, range from deceased animals to intimate objects and personal hygiene products, though the actor refuted those worst excesses. And then, naturally, we have Jim Carrey, who went so deep into Andy Kaufman for Man on the Moon that they literally managed in creating a feature-length documentary out of B-roll of him causing difficulties as impossible as he could for his colleagues.

Contemporary Method Practitioners

The main Method Guy currently would appear to be Jeremy Strong (formerly Day-Lewis’s assistant), whose process while filming Succession was so laboriously intensive that it formed the subject of a derisive magazine feature, including statements from people who were worried for his behaviour (“The toll to himself that worries me,” remarked co-star Brian Cox) or extremely irritated by it (“I recall [him] making others to react with exasperation,” said an unnamed co-star).

Daniel Day-Lewis says he ‘never intended to retire, truly’

We have so many other examples. Andrew Garfield abstained from sex for six months while preparing for Silence. Leonardo DiCaprio rested inside an animal carcass for The Revenant. There’s a fighting chance that Austin Butler still speaks in the style of Elvis, years following that film came out. Each of these instances, to some extent, is meant to invoke the seriousness with which Day-Lewis takes his craft.

An Admirable But Uphill Battle

Moreover, while his fightback to critics of the Method could be commendable, a short publicity tour might not be enough to change anyone’s mind, let alone their behaviour. Perhaps if he wants to remind people the true essence of the Method, or to demonstrate what it can achieve, then Day-Lewis’s best bet is to simply start making more films. Certainly everyone would get behind that.