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It’s been quite some time since anyone caught a glimpse of the acclaimed actor Daniel Day-Lewis. Following his announcement in 2017 that he would cease to work as an actor, prior to the debut of The Phantom Thread, the actor withdrew from the spotlight. Yet, during his hiatus, his legend expanded further.

The Legend of His Acting Method

Primarily, this legend centers on his favored style of working. Being an actor known for immerses himself in the roles he plays – for instance, while filming the Lincoln biopic, he had 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? Did he consumed solely animals he’d killed during The Last of the Mohicans? And did he demand being spoon-fed for My Left Foot?

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Currently, Day-Lewis has returned to public attention, with some hesitation, for his new film Anemone. He is using this to vocalise his anger regarding how method acting is perceived. “I’m a little cross nowadays to hear all kinds of people gobbling off and saying things like ‘gone full method’, which I think is meant to imply that someone is behaving like a lunatic in a drastic way,” he stated to a major publication. “People tends to focus on superficial details of the work, and those details typically include some form of self-punishment or a situation that imposes upon oneself a severe discomfort or mental instability. But of course, in the life for a performer, it has to principally be about the internal work.”

A World of Imitators

Frankly, this sounds as if the actor has emerged from his retreat and found himself aghast at the world that has been created in his image. If you’re regarded as among the best actors to ever work, and your process involves headbutting a dummy until you break your nose (for Gangs of New York) or enduring two days in isolation without food or water (for In the Name of the Father), then it stands to reason that other actors will attempt to emulate that example by trying to mimic their idol.

In other words, we now live in an environment populated by imperfect Day-Lewis impersonators who strive only to show the world the sheer amount of effort they invest in their roles. At the shallow end of this trend we have people like Lady Gaga, who was determined to win an Oscar with House of Gucci that she spent the entire promotion trying to convince everyone that she transformed into functionally Italian over 18 months as preparation.

Additionally, there is Jared Leto, who decided to deeply embed himself in the character of the Joker (for Suicide Squad) by sending “disturbing” gifts to fellow cast members. These, depending on who you ask, range from deceased animals to anal beads and used condoms, though the actor refuted those worst excesses. And then, of course, there is Jim Carrey, who went so deep as Andy Kaufman during Man on the Moon that they literally managed to get a full-length documentary out of B-roll of him making life to the utmost for everyone around him.

The Modern Followers of the Method

The foremost Method Guy currently would appear to be Jeremy Strong (once an assistant to Day-Lewis), whose approach while filming Succession was so laboriously intensive that it formed the basis of a critical New Yorker profile, full of quotes from individuals who were either concerned for his behaviour (“It’s the cost to himself concerns me,” remarked co-star Brian Cox) or extremely irritated by it (“I recall [him] making others to react with exasperation,” stated an anonymous cast member).

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We have numerous additional cases. Andrew Garfield abstained from sex for six months for Silence. Leonardo DiCaprio slept in an animal carcass during The Revenant. It’s quite possible that actor Austin Butler continues to talk like Elvis Presley, years following that film came out. Each of these instances, in part, aims to evoke the dedication with which Day-Lewis takes his craft.

An Admirable Yet Challenging Fight

And, although his rebuttal to critics of the Method could be commendable, a short publicity tour may prove insufficient to change anyone’s mind, let alone their behaviour. Maybe if he wishes to make audiences recall what method acting is, or to demonstrate what it can achieve, then the optimal strategy for Day-Lewis is to simply begin producing more films. Surely everyone would support that idea.