Comedy·ACTING

Daniel Day-Lewis lived for years as Daniel Day-Lewis for role as Daniel Day-Lewis in Daniel Day-Lewis biopic

Academy Award-winning method actor Daniel Day-Lewis is known for completely immersing himself in the lives of his characters.
(Shutterstock / Helga Esteb)

NEW YORK, NY—Academy Award-winning method actor Daniel Day-Lewis is known for completely immersing himself in the lives of his characters. But Day-Lewis says that his last role was by far his most challenging: playing Daniel Day-Lewis in the highly anticipated biopic Seize the Day: The Daniel Day-Lewis Story.

"When my agent brought me the script, which simply read, 'be yourself,' I knew I couldn't turn it down," says Day-Lewis, who then proceeded to live as Daniel Day-Lewis for three full years in preparation for his performance.

During this time, Day-Lewis wore clothes from his own wardrobe and required co-stars and film crew to call him by his actual name. "I've spent my entire career getting inside the minds of other people and finding out what makes them tick," he shared. "For this role I had to get inside my own mind, find out what makes me tick. How would Daniel Day-Lewis buy a loaf of bread? I've never asked myself these questions."

"We're talkin' super, super meta," says Spike Jonze, who wrote and directed the film, while landing a kick-flip. "Think Adaptation meets Being John Malkovich meets meta! It's about Daniel Day-Lewis, who is preparing for a role as Daniel Day-Lewis who is preparing for a role as Daniel Day-Lewis who is preparing for a role as Daniel Day-Lewis who is preparing for a role as Daniel Day-Lewis who is preparing for a role as Daniel Day-Lewis who is preparing for a role as ..." summarizes Jonze for several hours before collapsing from total exhaustion.

"I was a little shocked to find out that the Daniel I had been bro-in' out with was actually Daniel pretending to be Daniel," says Stephen Baldwin who is, surprisingly, Day-Lewis' best friend. "Part of me felt a little betrayed, but I'm glad to have helped him prepare for such a stellar performance, even after I found out they cast Michael Fassbender to play Stephen Baldwin instead of me."

"Typically, when Daniel gets deep into a role, it brings our family to the brink of collapse," says Day-Lewis' wife Rebecca Miller. "It was nice to spend time with my husband instead of some weird historical figure. When I married Daniel I didn't know I was also marrying Abraham Lincoln and Bill the Butcher. I really hope they make a sequel, because if I have to spend the next three years living with Genghis Khan, I'm looking for a lawyer."

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