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It has been a long while since anyone saw or heard from Daniel Day-Lewis. Following his announcement in 2017 that he would cease to pursue acting, just before the debut of Phantom Thread, Day-Lewis quietly faded from view. Yet, in his absence, his reputation has only grown.

The Mythos of His Method

Primarily, this reputation centers on his preferred approach to roles. As someone who famously disappears into the roles he plays – for instance, during Lincoln, he had Steven Spielberg call him “Mr President” for the entire production – audiences has become more fascinated with how he works. Is it true he actually sent texts to Sally Field in character as Lincoln? Was it accurate that he only eat animals he’d killed for Last of the Mohicans? Did he insist on being spoon-fed while filming My Left Foot?

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Now, Day-Lewis has returned in the limelight, with some hesitation, promoting his latest movie Anemone. And he is taking this chance to express his frustration regarding how the Method technique is perceived. “I am somewhat annoyed nowadays to hear all kinds of people gobbling off and using phrases like ‘gone full method’, which seems is meant to imply that a person’s behaving like a lunatic in a drastic way,” he told the New York Times. “Everyone often concentrate on the less important aspects of acting, and these elements always seem to involve some form of self-flagellation or an experience that imposes upon oneself extreme unease or mental instability. But of course, in the life of an actor, it has to mainly focus on the internal work.”

An Industry of Imitators

To be honest, this sounds like the actor has come out from his retreat only to discover shocked by the world that has been created mirroring his methods. If you’re widely considered one of the greatest performers to ever work, and your approach includes striking a prop to the point of injury (for Gangs of New York) or enduring 48 hours in solitary confinement deprived of sustenance (during 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.

Essentially, we exist in an environment populated by half-cocked Day-Lewis impersonators who want nothing more than to show the world the sheer amount of effort they put into a character. On the milder side of this trend there are performers such as Lady Gaga, who was determined to win an Oscar for House of Gucci that she dedicated the entire promotion attempting to persuade people that she became an Italian native over 18 months as preparation.

Additionally, there is Jared Leto, who decided to deeply embed himself in the character as the Joker (in Suicide Squad) through sending “disturbing” gifts to his castmates. These items, according to various accounts, included deceased animals to intimate objects and personal hygiene products, though Leto denied those worst excesses. And then, naturally, there is Jim Carrey, who went so deep into Andy Kaufman during Man on the Moon that filmmakers succeeded in creating a full-length documentary from behind-the-scenes footage of him causing difficulties to the utmost for his colleagues.

The Modern Followers of the Method

The main practitioner of the Method currently would appear to be Jeremy Strong (formerly an assistant to Day-Lewis), whose approach while filming Succession was so rigorously detailed that it became the basis of a derisive magazine feature, including statements from individuals who were worried for his behaviour (“The toll on himself concerns me,” remarked Brian Cox) or annoyed beyond all measure by his actions (“I recall [him] making others 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 like Elvis Presley, years following that film came out. Each of these instances, in part, aims to evoke the seriousness with which Day-Lewis approaches his work.

A Noble But Uphill Fight

And, while his fightback to critics of the Method might be noble, a short publicity tour may prove insufficient to change anyone’s mind, let alone their practices. Perhaps if he wants to make audiences recall what method acting is, or to show them its potential results, then Day-Lewis’s best bet is to simply begin producing additional movies. Certainly everyone would get behind that.