British film and theater actor, Daniel Day-Lewis, is famous for his meticulous approach to the embodiment of all his images on the screen, devoting all the years to this important process. Throughout his career, the actor has only 30 films, but three Oscars. In 2017, Daniel Day-Lewis announced his retirement from the film industry, starring in his latest film, Phantom Thread.
Biography of the actor
The full name of the actor is Sir Daniel Michael Blake Day-Lewis. Born April 29, 1957 in London, England.
Day-Lewis was the second child in the family. Father, Sacil Day-Lewis, was one of the most famous British poets of the 1930s. The actor's mother, Jill Balcon, was an actress. Day-Lewis's grandfather, Sir Michael Balcon, was also involved with filmmaking and worked as a producer.
As a child, Daniel's choice was predetermined. He began to study acting from an early age. Already at the age of 13, he got a cameo role as a young vandal in the film "Sunday Damn Sunday". Along with the beginning of his acting career, Daniel Day-Lewis was gaining experience on stage. He has starred in productions at the Royal Shakespeare Theater and Britain's oldest theater, the Bristol Old Vic.
Despite the fact that the actor was born into a family of "upper class", as a child, Daniel loved to play football, and often ran away to play with simpler children.
Daniel Day-Lewis film career
In 1982, the actor starred in the biographical drama Gandhi, and two years later appeared in the colorful historical film Bounty, where he played the role of one of the sailors on the ship. In this project, Mel Gibson and Anthony Hopkins became colleagues on the site.
In 1985, Daniel Day-Lewis cemented his rising star success with the melodrama Room with a View, portraying the sophisticated Edwardian Englishman.
This was followed by a drama based on real events, "My Left Foot". The biopic tells the story of an Irish artist and writer whose entire body was paralyzed except for his left leg. For the sake of authenticity, Daniel Day-Lewis spent many hours training one foot, trying to learn how to hold a hand with his toes, while keeping his body still. He also visited the clinic for the treatment of cerebral palsy and communicated with sick patients. Long training sessions did not remain in vain - Daniel Day-Lewis received his first Oscar for his brilliant performance.
The actor always took his characters seriously, preparing for this for several years, deeply immersing himself in the image. In preparation for the filming of The Last of the Mohicans, the actor lived in a “forest environment”, improved his physical condition, learned to drive an Indian canoe, and also to shoot a weapon of the 18th century. For the historical drama Gangs of New York, Daniel Day-Lewis worked as a butcher in a British store, gaining experience with butchering meat and handling knives. For the filming of the film "The Unbearable Lightness of Being", the actor began to study the Czech language in order to more reliably embody the personality of his character - the Czechoslovak doctor.
In 2008, the actor won his second Oscar for portraying the soulless owner of an oil company in 1920s America in the drama Oil.
Finally, Daniel Day-Lewis received his third Oscar for his realistic portrayal of President Abraham Lincolm in the 2012 biographical drama of the same name, directed by Steven Spielberg. The actor tried to convey the character of the American politician, his habits, facial expressions and gestures.
Daniel Day-Lewis's departure from the film industry
The actor has repeatedly tried to leave the cinema. In 2017, he announced that Phantom Thread would be the last of his career. The British actor has agreed to portray a stylish 1950s fashion designer who creates great work for high society.
Prior to that, in 1997, Daniel Day-Lewis was already trying to leave his film career, finding himself a new hobby - making shoes in one of the Italian workshops.
Daniel Day-Lewis and his hobbies
As a teenager, he studied woodworking in London. Daniel liked this occupation very much and he had a desire to become a craftsman. To this day, the actor does not leave his hobby, giving it even more attention and time than a career in cinema. “Being in the workshop is as necessary for me as eating and drinking. I love that feeling of creating and creating something. At 19, even before he started acting in theatrical performances, Daniel Day-Lewis was torn between studying acting and carpentry.
Daniel Day-Lewis actor title
In 2014, the British actor was knighted by Prince William for his achievements in the acting industry. The ceremony took place at Buckingham Palace. "I am totally amazed and utterly delighted at the same time," commented Sir Daniel Day-Lewis.
Personal life of the actor
Daniel Day-Lewis was in a relationship with French actress Isabelle Adjani (1989-1995), from whom Gabriel-Kane was born, but the couple broke up.
Since 1996, Daniel Day-Lewis has been happily married to actress and director Rebecca Miller. They have two children, Ronan Cal and Cashel Blake. The story of the actor's acquaintance with Rebecca is interesting. It happened on the set of the movie "The Crucible", when Daniel Day-Lewis did not leave the image of his character John Proctor, introducing himself by the name of this character. In addition, the actor got used to the role so much that he even built a house for himself - "John Proctor".
Despite the fact that the actor was born in the UK, after the first successes in his film career, he left the country, and settled in Ireland, taking a second citizenship in 1993.
