Daniel Day-Lewis has spent decades cementing his reputation as one of cinema’s most devoted performers, the kind of actor who disappears so completely into roles like There Will Be Blood, Lincoln, My Left Foot, and the 2025 movie releaseAnemone, that you forget there’s a person behind the performance. Yet for all the awards and reverence, he’s always seemed a little uneasy about the “method actor” label people love to toss around. Which is why I can’t get enough of him lately, calling out folks “gobbling off” about his process like they’ve got it all figured out.
In his recent New York Times interview, as part of that larger profile on his return to acting after announcing his retirement eight years ago, Day-Lewis pushed back hard on the modern misuse of “Method.” Specifically, on how people casually toss around phrases like “gone full Method,” as though acting and lunacy are interchangeable. He told the outlet:
I don’t really like thinking of acting in terms of craft at all. Of course, there are techniques you can learn, and I know that the Method has become an easy target these days. I’m a little cross these days to hear all kinds of people gobbling off and saying things like ‘gone full Method,’ which I think is meant to imply that a person’s behaving like a lunatic in an extreme fashion.
He doesn’t stop there. According to the beloved English actor, most people completely miss the point when it comes to what truly goes into embodying a character. He explained:
Everyone tends to focus on the less important details of the work, and those details always seem to involve some sort of self-flagellation or an experience that imposes upon oneself a severe discomfort or mental instability. But of course, in the life of an actor, it has to principally be about the internal work.
There’s something surprisingly grounding in the Lincoln star’s perspective. For years, the industry, press, and social media have been obsessed with what it means to be a so-called “method actor.” Just look at the mythology surrounding stars like Jared Leto, who famously “went method,” reportedly sending bizarre gifts to co-stars while preparing to play The Joker. We’ve come to romanticize those outward displays of “I suffered for my art,” or worse, “I made others suffer,” as if endurance itself equals excellence. But Day-Lewis isn’t buying into any of that.
The Last of the Mohicans star’s comments expose a long-standing misconception that true acting genius must come packaged with a touch of madness. By challenging that idea, the Gangs of New York actor isn’t rejecting discipline or preparation, and is questioning the audience’s fixation on spectacle over substance. Why do we focus so much on the external theatrics and so little on the quiet, internal transformation that real performance demands? It’s a fair question, and likely part of why he’s so selective about his roles. If you’re going to dig that deep into a character’s soul, you’d better make sure it’s one worth inhabiting.
After a long hiatus, Daniel Day-Lewis has stepped back into the spotlight with Anemone, a film he co-wrote with his son. The drama opened in limited theaters on October 3, 2025, and critics have strong feelings about Day-Lewis’ return. Still, this is one worth experiencing firsthand, so be sure to check your local listings and see it for yourself.
