In his final role in Phantom Thread, Daniel Day-Lewis admitted that he had lost the “will to go on” and that he had stopped laughing during the production process that led him to leave the industry.
Daniel Day-Lewis, the sole actor to claim three Best Actor Oscars, sent shockwaves through Hollywood when he announced his retirement from acting – a choice that appears to have crystallised whilst filming his swan song, Phantom Thread (2017).
As My Beautiful Laundrette makes its return to British cinemas on August 1, it provides a precious glimpse of Day-Lewis before stardom claimed him; however, it’s Phantom Thread that seemingly delivered the final blow.
Day-Lewis publicly announced his retirement from acting at the age of 60 after the success of Phantom Thread, which was filmed in a cozy London townhouse where the entire cast and crew resided and worked under one roof.
He remarked to Variety at the time, “I need to believe in what I’m doing,” confessing that his conviction had vanished.
Describing the early stages of filming with director Paul Thomas Anderson, he recalled: “we laughed a lot… and then we stopped laughing because we were both overwhelmed by a sense of sadness… It was hard to live with. And still is.”, reports the Express.
He admitted, in the most heartfelt way, that “I haven’t figured it out” and that “I haven’t made the decision to stop working as an actor.” However, that is not the reason why sadness persists. I have no idea why that occurred while the story was being told.
Day-Lewis’ career has been forged by his mastery of completely immersive acting. Between scenes for My Left Foot (1989), he stayed in a wheelchair during In the Name of the Father (1993), and he spent time slicing animals to prepare for The Last of the Mohicans (1992).
These brutal actions cost him Oscars for My Left Foot, There Will Be Blood, and Lincoln (2012), as well as a significant personal price.
In a 2009 conversation with The Guardian, he defended his commitment, saying that maintaining character between takes ensures that “there isn’t the rupture every time the camera stops, every time you become aware of the cables and the anoraks and hear the walkie-talkies,” which supports the fantasy and prevents jarring reversals to contemporary reality.
However, his most valuable skill, which was once his greatest asset, was lost in Phantom Thread. Day-Lewis was filmed as “finicky Reynolds Woodcock in perpetual sweaty close-up for week after week,” but the London residence suffocated and caught him in the suffocating stoo.
It was a logistical nightmare, he admitted openly, and it was difficult to work with a crew that truly despises you.
Day-Lewis revealed the character felt hollow, saying that he “no longer believed it himself,” despite receiving yet another Oscar nomination.
His enigmatic reputation had always been a result of his profession, which has seen only seven films since 2000, which his rare but exceptional performances have been able to demonstrate. Day-Lewis has largely avoided the public eye since he hanged his acting boots in 2017.
He recently accepted a role in Anemone, a group drama he directed himself, along with Sean Bean and Samantha Morton. In a humble supporting role, a nod to his early acting days rather than a reinvention, will he appear in his final song, which would be his last.
Source: Mirror
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