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It has been quite some time since anyone saw or heard from Daniel Day-Lewis. After he statement in 2017 declaring he would cease to work as an actor, just before the debut of The Phantom Thread, the actor withdrew from the spotlight. However, during his hiatus, his reputation expanded further.

The Legend Surrounding His Method

Largely, this reputation centers on his preferred approach to roles. As someone known for immerses himself in the roles he plays – for instance, during the Lincoln biopic, reportedly asked Steven Spielberg address him as “Mr President” for the entire production – the world has become increasingly obsessed with how he works. Is it true he really send messages to co-star 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 for My Left Foot?

Madness in their method: has the public fallen out of love with over-the-top performances?

Now, Daniel Day-Lewis is back in the limelight, with some hesitation, promoting his latest movie Anemone. And he is taking this chance to vocalise his frustration at how the Method technique is perceived. “I am somewhat annoyed these days to hear various individuals talking carelessly and saying things like ‘fully embraced the Method’, which seems suggests that a person’s behaving like a lunatic in a drastic way,” he told a major publication. “Everyone often concentrate on superficial aspects of acting, and these elements typically include some form of self-punishment or a situation that causes extreme unease or psychological strain. However, in the career of an actor, it has to mainly focus on the internal work.”

A World Full of Followers

Frankly, it appears like the actor has come out from seclusion and found himself shocked by the acting community that has been created in his image. When you are widely considered one of the greatest actors to ever work, and your approach involves headbutting a dummy to the point of injury (in Gangs of New York) or spending two days in isolation without food or water (during In the Name of the Father), it’s natural that fellow performers will want to emulate that example by trying to mimic their idol.

In other words, we exist in an environment populated by half-cocked Day-Lewis impersonators who strive only to demonstrate the sheer amount of dedication they put into a character. On the milder side of this trend there are performers such as Lady Gaga, who was so desperate to win an Oscar with House of Gucci that she dedicated the entire promotion attempting to persuade people that she transformed into functionally Italian over 18 months as preparation.

Additionally, there is Jared Leto, who decided to immerse himself in the character of the Joker (in Suicide Squad) through sending “horrifying” presents to his castmates. These items, according to various accounts, range from dead pigs and rats to intimate objects and personal hygiene products, though the actor refuted those worst excesses. And then, of course, there is Jim Carrey, who went so deep 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 his colleagues.

Contemporary Followers of the Method

The main Method Guy currently seems to be Jeremy Strong (once Day-Lewis’s assistant), whose process while filming Succession was so laboriously intensive that it became the subject of a derisive magazine feature, full of quotes from people who were worried for his behaviour (“It’s the cost to himself concerns me,” remarked Brian Cox) or annoyed beyond all measure by it (“I remember [him] making others roll their eyes,” said an anonymous cast member).

The actor claims he ‘did not plan to retire, truly’

We have numerous additional cases. Andrew Garfield abstained from sex over half a year for Silence. Leonardo DiCaprio slept in an animal carcass for The Revenant. There’s a fighting chance that Austin Butler continues to talk like Elvis Presley, three years after that film came out. Each of these instances, to some extent, aims to evoke the dedication in which Day-Lewis approaches his craft.

A Noble But Uphill Battle

Moreover, while his fightback against method detractors could be commendable, a brief promotional cycle may prove insufficient to alter perceptions, let alone their practices. Maybe if he wants to remind people the true essence of the Method, or to demonstrate what it can achieve, then the optimal strategy for Day-Lewis is to just start making additional movies. Surely we could all get behind that.