Daniel Day-Lewis hits back over ‘misrepresentation’ of his method acting

Oscar-winning actor Sir Daniel Day-Lewis has said the misrepresentation of his method acting “pisses me off” as it is “invariably attached to the idea of some kind of lunacy”.

Sir Daniel, 68, known for using method techniques that focus on psychological and physical immersion, is said to have lived in a tent on a deserted Texan oil field during the making of There Will Be Blood (2007) and spent two or three days in a prison cell without food and water to play Guildford Four member Gerry Conlon for film In The Name Of The Father (1993).

He told the Big Issue: “I just don’t like it being misrepresented to the extent it has been.

“I can’t think of a single commentator who’s gobbed off about the method that has any understanding of how it works and the intention behind it.

“They focus on ‘oh, he lived in a jail cell for six months’ (for In The Name Of The Father). Those are the least important details.

“In all the performing arts, people find their methods as a means to an end.

“It’s with the intention of freeing yourself so you present your colleagues with a living, breathing human being they can interact with. It’s very simple.

“So it pisses me off this whole ‘Oh, he went full method’ thing. What the f***, you know? Because it’s invariably attached to the idea of some kind of lunacy.

“I choose to stay and splash around, rather than jump in and out or play practical jokes with whoopee cushions between takes or whatever people think is how you should behave as an actor.”

In 2023, Succession actor Brian Cox criticised the use of method acting by his co-star Jeremy Strong, and added: “Of course, Jeremy was Dan Day-Lewis’ assistant. So he’s learned all that stuff from Dan.”

Sir Daniel told the Big Issue: “If I thought during our work together I’d interfered with his working process, I’d be appalled. But I don’t think it was like that.

“So I don’t know where the f*** that came from. Jeremy Strong is a very fine actor, I don’t know how he goes about things, but I don’t feel responsible in any way for that.”

The actor’s career has seen him bag three best actor Oscars, in 1990 for playing wheelchair-bound Christy Brown in My Left Foot, in 2008 for playing oil man Daniel Plainview in There Will Be Blood, and in 2013 for his portrayal of the former US president in Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln.

He recently made a return to acting to star in psychological drama Anemone – the first feature film from his director son Ronan Day-Lewis.

In 2017, a statement from the Sir Daniel’s representative said the actor – also known for his powerful performance as Hawkeye in Michael Mann’s 1992 epic The Last Of The Mohicans – had retired from acting.

Fears this was a permanent move were created by what he now calls an “ill-advised statement”, which read: “Daniel Day-Lewis will no longer be working as an actor.”

Read the full interview with Daniel Day-Lewis in this week’s Big Issue, out now.