In June 2017, Daniel Day-Lewis announced that he was retiring from acting. The official statement read, "Daniel Day-Lewis will no longer be working as an actor. He is immensely grateful to all of his collaborators and audiences over the many years. This is a private decision and neither he nor his representatives will make any further comment on this subject." His last film, Phantom Thread was released in November that year.
Day-Lewis said he hadn't planned on quitting before working on the film. The Gangs of New York star shocked Hollywood with his sudden decision, leaving many fellow actors speculating that he'd be back. But after winning the Oscar for Best Actor three times, some say it's possible that the actor is just satisfied with how far his career had already gone. The truth is, the "Greatest Actor of All Time" had some far deeper reasons for quitting acting.
It Started During The Filming Of 'Phantom Thread'
Daniel Day-Lewis revealed that the conviction of quitting the acting world came to him "during the telling of the story" of Phantom Thread. He didn't even want to see the finished film as a commitment to his decision. "Before making the film, I didn’t know I was going to stop acting," Day-Lewis told W Magazine.
"I do know that Paul [Thomas Anderson] and I laughed a lot before we made the movie. And then we stopped laughing because we were both overwhelmed by a sense of sadness. That took us by surprise: We didn’t realize what we had given birth to. It was hard to live with. And still is."
Day-Lewis added that he wanted to explore the world in a different way. It's certainly difficult to imagine him doing anything else. But if he managed to turn into every movie role he played, we're sure he'll succeed in other professions as well. Come on, he actually sewed a Balenciaga dress in preparation for the Phantom Thread, brought Abraham Lincoln to life in Lincoln, and was trained by a master butcher for Gangs of New York.
Day-Lewis Hadn't Been Seeing Value In His Work Anymore
Day-Lewis himself wasn't sure what triggered his leaving. "I haven’t figured it out," he said. "But it’s settled on me, and it’s just there…I dread to use the overused word ‘artist,’ but there’s something of the responsibility of the artist that hung over me. I need to believe in the value of what I’m doing. The work can seem vital. Irresistible, even. And if an audience believes it, that should be good enough for me. But, lately, it isn’t."
It's interesting how the actor felt that way given his dedication to every performance. However, it's understandable that maybe the actor only felt like there were no more interesting roles for him to play. After all, he's always portrayed intense and remarkable characters such as the Irish writer, Christy Brown, who suffered from cerebral palsy in My Left Foot. The actor's performance in that film got him his first Oscar nomination and win for Best Actor.
He'd Always Thought He Should Stop Acting
Daniel-Day Lewis admitted that putting out a statement about his retirement was indeed "uncharacteristic" but that he wanted to draw a line. "I didn’t want to get sucked back into another project," he said. "All my life, I’ve mouthed off about how I should stop acting, and I don’t know why it was different this time, but the impulse to quit took root in me, and that became a compulsion. It was something I had to do."
Some believe that this compulsion was probably exhaustion from taking method acting too seriously. Day-Lewis is known for living his character's life for the entire duration of every project. He picked fights with strangers for Gangs of New York, lived on prison rations for In the Name of the Father, lived without electricity and running water for Crucible, and would even text co-star Sally Field as Abraham Lincoln for Lincoln.
Nobody knows really knows what the main reason for this decision was. Even Daniel Day-Lewis himself couldn't pinpoint what it was. But people are still hopeful he'd come back. The Last of the Mohicans actor once took five years off from acting to become an apprentice with Italian shoemaker Stefano Bemer in the late 1990s. After that hiatus, Day-Lewis went on to play William Poole AKA Bill the Butcher in Gangs of New York. It earned the actor an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor.
With the right character, Hollywood might just be able to get Daniel Day-Lewis back in the game. We'll just have to wait and see...
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