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It’s been quite some time since anyone saw or heard from Daniel Day-Lewis. Following his announcement in 2017 that he would no longer work as an actor, just before the debut of Phantom Thread, the actor withdrew from the spotlight. Yet, in his absence, his reputation expanded further.

The Mythos of His Method

Primarily, this legend centers on his preferred approach to roles. As someone known for immerses himself in the roles he plays – for instance, while filming Lincoln, reportedly asked the director address him as “Mr. President” for the entire production – the world has grown more fascinated with how he works. Is it true he actually sent messages to co-star Sally Field in character as Lincoln? Did he only eat animals he’d killed for Last of the Mohicans? Did he insist on receiving food via spoon for My Left Foot?

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Currently, Day-Lewis has returned in the limelight, somewhat reluctantly, for his new film Anemone. And he is taking this chance to express his anger regarding how method acting is viewed. “I am somewhat annoyed these days to hear various individuals talking carelessly and saying things like ‘gone full method’, which I think suggests that someone is behaving like a lunatic in an extreme fashion,” he stated to the New York Times. “Everyone tends to focus on the less important details of the work, and these elements always seem to involve some form of self-punishment or an experience that causes extreme unease or psychological strain. However, in the career for a performer, it has to mainly focus on the inner transformation.”

A World Full of Followers

To be honest, it appears as if the actor has emerged from his retreat only to discover shocked by the world that has developed mirroring his methods. When you are widely considered among the best actors in history, and your process involves striking a prop until you break your nose (in Gangs of New York) or spending 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 fill that vacuum by trying to mimic their idol.

In other words, we exist in a landscape populated by imperfect Day-Lewis impersonators who want nothing more than to show the world the extensive degree of effort they put into their roles. At the shallow end of the pool there are performers such as Lady Gaga, who was so desperate to earn an Academy Award for House of Gucci that she spent the whole campaign trying to convince everyone that she transformed into an Italian native for a year and a half as preparation.

Additionally, there is Jared Leto, who chose to immerse himself in the character as the Joker (for Suicide Squad) by sending “horrifying” gifts to fellow cast members. These, depending on who you ask, included dead pigs and rats to anal beads and personal hygiene products, although Leto denied the most extreme claims. Then, of course, there is Jim Carrey, who went so deep as Andy Kaufman during Man on the Moon that filmmakers succeeded to get a feature-length documentary from behind-the-scenes footage of him making life as impossible as he could for everyone around him.

The Modern Followers of the Method

The foremost Method Guy currently seems to be Jeremy Strong (formerly Day-Lewis’s assistant), whose process during Succession was so laboriously intensive that it became the subject of a critical magazine feature, including statements from people who were worried for his behaviour (“The toll on himself concerns me,” said Brian Cox) or annoyed beyond all measure by it (“I recall [him] making others to react with exasperation,” stated an anonymous cast member).

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

There are so many other examples. Andrew Garfield abstained from sex over half a year for Silence. Leonardo DiCaprio slept in a dead animal during The Revenant. There’s a fighting chance that Austin Butler continues to talk like Elvis Presley, years following the movie’s release. All of this, in part, aims to evoke the seriousness in which Day-Lewis takes his work.

A Noble Yet Challenging Fight

And, although his rebuttal to critics of the Method might be noble, a brief promotional cycle may prove insufficient to change anyone’s mind, let alone their practices. Maybe if he wants to remind people what method acting is, or to show them its potential results, then the optimal strategy for Day-Lewis is to simply begin producing additional movies. Surely everyone would get behind that.