This Monday evening, Arte dedicates its night to the British actor Daniel Day-Lewis, with the broadcast of one of his most striking films, There Will Be Blood by Paul Thomas Anderson, followed by an exclusive documentary on the unique working method of this actor with three Oscars. A rare opportunity to rediscover someone many consider one of the greatest living performers, while exploring the dark side surrounding his career.
A total immersion, crowned with success
Released in 2008 in France, There Will Be Blood earned Daniel Day-Lewis his second Oscar for Best Actor, solidifying his reputation as a prodigy artist. The film, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson (Boogie Nights, Punch-Drunk Love), tells the story of an oil prospector whose quest for wealth turns into a destructive obsession. Praised by critics, it is described in Première as a "masterful" performance, embodying a character whose "flashes of humanity touch us with remarkable accuracy".
This intensity stems from the famous "method" of Day-Lewis: a total immersion in his roles. To portray a Mohican Indian, he learned to hunt and make canoes (The Last of the Mohicans, 1992). For Gangs of New York (2002), he took butchery classes to become credible as a New York butcher. Each time, he remains inhabited by his characters even off-set, an exacting approach that fascinates as much as it exhausts those around him.
A career marked by retreats and comebacks
The broadcast of There Will Be Blood will be followed by a documentary titled Daniel Day-Lewis: The Heir, made in 2021. Rich in unseen archives, this film attempts to unravel the mystery of this actor who has maintained an almost aristocratic distance from fame. While Hollywood crowns him as a living legend, Day-Lewis regularly chooses to leave the spotlight: an apprentice shoemaker in Italy in the 1990s, exile in Ireland, and media silence between his films.
Each return is nevertheless an event. After announcing his retirement with Lincoln (2012), he returned in 2017 for Phantom Thread, a new collaboration with Paul Thomas Anderson. This time, he claims it will be his last role, retreating once again into carefully maintained anonymity. But in 2024, rumors suggest his participation in his son Ronan Miller‘s upcoming film, titled Anemone.
A troubling personality
Born in 1957 in London, Daniel Day-Lewis claims a free career, outside the star system. His relationship with fame is paradoxical: he does not hesitate to engage in prestigious productions, like Gangs of New York (2002) alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, but he shuns any form of cult of personality. His fine face, piercing gaze, and slender silhouette rarely lend themselves to the tabloid press.
Love and France: the Adjani imprint
One of Day-Lewis’s few public relationships remains his story with French actress Isabelle Adjani. Their union, as passionate as it was discreet, marked the late 1980s. Their son, Gabriel-Kane, was born in 1995, after their separation. Unlike his parents, Gabriel-Kane chose a career in music and modeling, far from film sets.
After Adjani, Daniel Day-Lewis married director Rebecca Miller, daughter of playwright Arthur Miller. Together, they settled in the Irish countryside, opting for a peaceful life and relative solitude.
A most precious legacy
Arte’s choice to broadcast There Will Be Blood followed by a documentary is a tribute to the unique place of Daniel Day-Lewis in cinema. Rarely has an actor left such a mark with his psychological investment and ability to disappear into his roles. As Paul Thomas Anderson prepares his next film with Leonardo DiCaprio, Day-Lewis’s presence still looms over Hollywood, like a mythical figure.
This Monday evening, Arte offers a chance to approach this paradoxical actor, through a powerful role and an enlightening documentary. A program that perfectly reflects the demand and mystery of an artist whose imprint on cinema is, indeed, indelible.
