In the summer of 2017, Oscar-winning actor Daniel Day-Lewis surprised Hollywood, London and the entire entertainment world when he revealed that he retired from acting and would make no more films. His final performance in Paul Thomas Anderson‘s “Phantom Thread” (2017) brought Day-Lewis his sixth Oscar nomination, his eighth Golden Globe nom and his seventh BAFTA bid (losing all three to Gary Oldman for “Darkest Hour”).
One of the most respected actors of his generation, Day-Lewis is the only man who has won three Oscars for Best Actor. Those victories were for “My Left Foot” (1989), “There Will Be Blood” (2007), and “Lincoln” (2012). In fact he is one of only three men to win acting Oscars three times; the others are Walter Brennan and Jack Nicholson. In addition, he has won two Best Actor awards each from the Screen Actors Guild and the Golden Globes.
Most importantly (if retirement actually happens), he will have left behind a remarkable legacy of screen performances, which will be difficult to replicate by any actor. Let’s look back at the wildly diverse collection of characters that Sir Daniel has brought to the screen. Tour through our photo gallery to revisit 12 of his greatest movies, ranked from worst to best, including the three that brought him Academy Awards.
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12. THE AGE OF INNOCENCE (1993)
Image Credit: Arnaud Borrel/Columbia/REX/Shutterstock “The Age of Innocence” is not a film that immediately comes to mind when you think of Martin Scorsese movies, nor is it one when you think “Daniel Day-Lewis.” But the pair’s first collaboration captures a raging passion bubbling just underneath the norms of society. Day-Lewis plays Newland Archer, who intends to marry May Welland (Winona Ryder), a respectable young woman in 1870s New York society, when May’s cousin, Countess Ellen Olenska (Michelle Pfeiffer) swoops into town and into Newland’s heart. Torn by his passion for Ellen and his obligation to May, Newland finds himself constricted by the expectations of society, a conflict that Day-Lewis renders with a raging grace.
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11. THE BOXER (1997)
Image Credit: Universal/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Newly released from prison, ex-boxer Danny Flynn (Day-Lewis) returns to his Belfast home, vowing not to return to his old ways of fighting for the Irish Republican Army. Easier said than done. After opening a legit boxing club for boys, Danny soon runs afoul of a ruthless IRA lieutanant (Gerard McSorley), who seeks to see that Danny is executed. Danny is a character who appears to fit Day-Lewis like a glove — he’s a fighter, but even at 32, there’s a world-weariness to his eyes that Day-Lewis communicates brilliantly. For his performance Day-Lewis received his second Golden Globe nomination.
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10. GANGS OF NEW YORK (2002)
Image Credit: Snap Stills/REX/Shutterstock In Martin Scorsese’s spawling epic of New York in the 1860s, Day-Lewis portrays Bill “The Butcher” Cutting, a kingmaker who is beholden to the the politically powerful “Boss” Tweed (Jim Broadbent) who uses Bill’s brutal anti-Irish and anti-Catholic gang, the “Natives,” to quash the growing influence of immigrants. Enter Amsterdam Vallon (Leonardo DiCaprio) who leads an army of his own and is determined to bring down Bill, not just for his politics but as revenge against Bill for killing his father. “Gangs of New York” brought Day-Lewis his third Best Actor Oscar nomination.
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9. THE UNBEARABLE LIGHTNESS OF BEING (1988)
Image Credit: Saul Zaentz Company/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Womanizing Czech brain surgeon Tomas (Day-Lewis) lives in Prague with artist Sabrina (Lena Olin), with whom he is conducting a torrid affair. However, while visiting a spa, Tomas catches the eye of waitress Tereza (Juliette Binoche), who says that she desires intellectual stimulation, which Tomas quickly provides, and unsurprisingly they begin an affair just as invading Soviet tanks roll all around them into Prague. As a character, Tomas must be a romantic lothario and political activist at the same time — a tall order, but it’s one that Day-Lewis is able to pull off with his considerable skillls.
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8. A ROOM WITH A VIEW (1985)
Image Credit: Merchant Ivory/Goldcrest/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock In James Ivory’s popular all-star adaptation of E.M.Forster’s novel, Day-Lewis takes a supporting role as snobbish twit Cecil Vyse, who asks our heroine Lucy Honeychurch (Helena Bonham Carter) to marry him. Lucy, anxious to put the memories of a failed love affair behind her, accepts, even though she has questions about a husband who would prefer to take a walk while reciting novels out loud over rather than play tennis with her. Day-Lewis plays Cecil very dryly, to the point where at times, he doesn’t even realize he’s making a joke, which only helps to make “A Room with a View” even more enjoyable.
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7. THE LAST OF THE MOHICANS (1992)
Image Credit: Frank Connor/20th Century Fox/Morgan Creek/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock It’s 1757 in the midst of the French and Indian War, and a party of travelers is ambushed by Indian warriors but manage to be rescued by the chief of the rival Mohican tribe, Chingachgook (Russell Means), and his white adopted son Hawkeye (Day-Lewis). The actor has been praised previously for his impressive physical prowess, but no film to date had challenged Day-Lewis the way director Michael Mann’s grueling stunt work required him to endure. Day-Lewis certainly rose to the challenge of Hawkeye’s physical being, while still delivering a sensitive portrait of the warrior himself.
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6. MY BEAUTIFUL LAUNDRETTE (1985)
Image Credit: Working Title/Channel 4/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock In Stephen Frears’ film, young Pakistani Omar (Gordon Warnecke), in need of a job, becomes the manager of a run-down laundrette in a London Pakistani neighborhood that has been terrorized by a group of street punks. On night, he is attacked by the punks whose leader Johnny (Day-Lewis) turns out to be one of Omar’s childhood buddies and (it is hinted) Omar’s ex-lover. They rekindle their friendship, and Omar offers him a job at the launderette and together they fight off Johnny’s former punk colleagues who feel betrayed. 1985 was a watershed year for Daniel Day-Lewis — from the gay punk in “Launderette” to the snobbish twit in “A Room with a View,” he displayed his wide versatility and proved to the world that he was here to stay. And so he has.
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5. IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER (1993)
Image Credit: Jonathan Hession/Universal/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Based on a real-life event, Jim Sheridan’s bio-drama focuses on construction worker Gerry Conlon (Day-Lewis), who is rounded up with three other men, including Gerry’s father Giuseppe (Pete Postlethwaite) and tried for the 1974 bombing of a British pub that killed five people. Their case comes to the attention of human-rights defense attorney Gareth Peirce (Emma Thompson) who unearths evidence that could change the outcome of the case. The second of three collaborations between Day-Lewis and writer/director Jim Sheridan, “In the Name of the Father” garnered Oscar nominations for Sheridan, Day-Lewis, Postlethwaite and Thompson.
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4. PHANTOM THREAD (2017)
Image Credit: Focus Features In what he has said will be his final film performance, Day-Lewis portrays Reynolds Woodcock, a top London fashion designer in the 1950s, a confirmed bachelor who regularly goes through a parade of beautiful young would-be muses, who are eventually shown the door by his business partner and sister Cyril (Lesley Manville). However, when he encounters young waitress Alma (Vicky Krieps), Reynolds thinks that he may have found his true inspiration. Day-Lewis’ controlled performance here is reminiscent of his Newland in “The Age of Innocence,” where his passion seems ready to explode at any moment.
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3. MY LEFT FOOT (1989)
Image Credit: ITV/REX/Shutterstock Day-Lewis won his first of three Best Actor Academy Awards for his portrayal of Cristy Brown, the Irish writer and painter who could neither walk nor talk due to the effects of cerebral palsy. Day-Lewis’ enormous acting challenge as Cristy was far more physical than most actors would have the skills to realize, as he must, by body positioning, convince us that much of his body is useless, communicating solely by the use of his facial expressions and the writing skills he has developed through the use of his left foot. His was a deserved Oscar win that no one can question.
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2. THERE WILL BE BLOOD (2007)
Image Credit: 2007-Paramount/Vantage/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock Paul Thomas Anderson’s “There Will Be Blood” brought Day-Lewis his second Academy Award (as well as his first Golden Globe and first SAG Award). Day-Lewis portrays Daniel Plainview, a silver prospector who in 1902 discovers oil near Los Angeles. Plainview establishes a small drilling company there and begins a life devoted to power, leverage and, most of all, money. On paper, Plainview would appear to be an out-and-out villain, but what Day-Lewis brings to the table is an ability to suggest that there’s much more to this character than just what we see, and he manages to keep us hooked on that possibility throughout the entire film.
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1. LINCOLN (2012)
Image Credit: Dreamworks/20th Century Fox/Kobal/REX/Shutterstock For his performance as Abraham Lincoln, Day-Lewis won the Best Actor Oscar, as well as a Golden Globe and the SAG Award. Day-Lewis’ Lincoln is an unexpected creation, far from The Great Man orator that has become the Lincoln cliche. He has chosen to give Lincoln a surprisingly high-pitched voice and present him as a thoughtful leader, passionate about keeping the Union together and getting the 13th Amendment (abolishing slavery) passed. Under Steven Spielberg’s direction and Tony Kushner’s script, never has amending the Constitution been more suspenseful.
