History Creator / DanielDayLewis

Surprisngly, he's not [[UsefulNotes/BarackObama Barack]] [[https://youtu.be/ZyU213nhrh0 Obama]].

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[[caption-width-right:300:[[MethodActing For this article, Mr. Day-Lewis actually turned himself into a website.]]]]

* LargeHam: See ChewingTheScenery for more details.

Day-Lewis' father was British Poet Laureate Cecil Day-Lewis, while his maternal grandfather was the film producer Michael Balcon. He's married to Creator/ArthurMiller's daughter Rebecca Miller, an accomplished writer in her own right, whom he met while filming ''Theatre/TheCrucible''. Prior to that, Day-Lewis had a relationship with French actress Isabelle Adjani, with whom he has a son. He famously ended that relationship by breaking up with her over fax.

* BunnyEarsLawyer: Let's be honest, he'd have been committed to an asylum long ago if he wasn't such a brilliant actor.
* CallToAgriculture: After learning to make his own clothes in preparation for one film, he left film for six years to become a cobbler in Florence.
* CelebrityIsOverrated: He's made clear he has little to no interest in fame or any aspect of acting besides the work itself, keeping a very low profile when not working.

* HoistByHisOwnPetard: His fame (or infamy) of exhaustively adhering to his characters has cost him roles, including ones that he probably would have enjoyed doing and would have been very good in, simply because some directors (such as Creator/PeterJackson, when he was casting for Aragorn in ''The Lord of the Rings'') are unwilling to subject themselves and the other actors under their care to his behavior. Even actors are unwilling to stand him: Creator/LiamNeeson was pretty annoyed by how he didn't drop character while they were filming ''Film/GangsOfNewYork'', to the point that it was reported that he swore to never work with him again.

* NiceGuy: By all accounts, when not deep into character as a less than lovable person like Bill the Butcher, he's a pleasant and sweet-natured guy, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-r5DlfrtZRM even using one of his acceptance speeches]] to deliver a heartwarming tribute to Creator/HeathLedger who had passed away recently and dedicating the award to him.
* NiceJewishBoy: Though by his own admission he's an agnostic.
* OddFriendship: He is close friends with Creator/AdamSandler, [[https://www.wmagazine.com/story/adam-sandler-daniel-day-lewis-friends-uncut-gems of all people]], enough for Sandler to refer him as "Danny".
* ParentalAbandonment: His father died when he was fourteen. This became an issue years later when during a production of ''{{Theatre/Hamlet}}'', he had a nervous breakdown, specifically during the scene of confronting the father's ghost. Years later he admitted that he got so into the role, that he actually felt that he had seen his own father's ghost. It's his last theatrical role to date.

* ReclusiveArtist: He's known for being intensely private, avoiding the spotlight when not working and not using social media.
* SeriousBusiness: Notoriously takes acting very seriously. Luckily he's very good at it.

Day-Lewis is known for refusing to compromise on any performance, fully giving in to each role he plays by working to immerse himself into the lifestyle of his character as much as possible, even to the point of negatively affecting his health. This made it hard for him to function as a stage actor, where such levels of commitment make performances harder to repeat on a nightly basis. He was far better suited to film, and even then as he grew older, his dedication and commitment to each part made it harder for him to continue with his next role.

Although he took a leave of absence after starring in Jim Sheridan's 1997 film ''The Boxer'' -- dropping off the media radar, going into "semi-retirement", and returning to an old wood-making passion while apprenticing as a shoemaker -- Creator/MartinScorsese convinced Day-Lewis to return for his film ''Film/GangsOfNewYork'' in what was the biggest and most high-profile role Day-Lewis had ever played, as gang leader Bill the Butcher. The role was also different from his earlier parts; Day-Lewis had played sensitive (albeit intense), highly vulnerable and generally heroic characters, but Bill was a flamboyant LargeHam villain who was supremely [[RatedMForManly macho]] and charismatic. The result was a performance that some consider one of modern cinema's most iconic villains.

* DoingItForTheArt: As has been mentioned, Day-Lewis is one of the most well known method actors around, to the point where he's actually achieved a memetic status as the go to for insane dedication to acting, as during the filming process, he never gets out of character. While playing Bill the Butcher in ''Film/GangsOfNewYork'', he famously refused to seek medical treatment for pneumonia until it became almost life threatening, as it was not in keeping with available medical treatment in the 1860's. He also [[ThrowItIn ad libbed]] tapping on his glass eye with a knife to intimidate William Tweed. When playing a villain, he will accost other actors in character on and off the set, and get into fights in bars in preparation for a role. When playing any character, he will spend six months mastering an accent,[[note]]Even if it's completely unnecessary--the most extreme example being when he learned Czech to play the lead in ''Literature/TheUnbearableLightnessOfBeing'' despite the fact that the film was shot in English[[/note]] learning various crafts, and adopting disabilities.