Daniel Day Lewis made a great return to the screens of “Anemone,” which premiered Sunday afternoon at the New York Film Festival. The Oscar winner has not retired from acting after eight years of absence to star in the directorial debut of his son, Ronan Day Lewis. And while the crowd was keen to watch Daniel Day Lewis in another film, they probably wouldn’t be as excited as the kid in his middle.
“Being here with everyone tonight is a privilege beyond words,” Ronan Day Lewis, who co-wrote the script with her father, told the packed house at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center. “I’m confused by the words.”
Set in northern England, Anemone is a recluse and former British soldier who lived isolated in the forest for 20 years, following Daniel Day Lewis. His life is covered when his brother, painted by Sean Bean, appears and forces him to stand up to his mystical past. Samantha Morton, Samuel Bottomley and Saffia Oakley Greene were not present at the premiere, but they closed out the cast.
Ronan Day-Lewis described his “very intuitive” working relationship with his father. “We fell into rhythm early,” Ronan told Variety on the red carpet. “It was a real sense of play and freedom.”
Daniel Day Lewis repeated his son’s feelings, claiming that the set collaboration between the two was familiar and easy. There was no need to set it before the camera rolled over.
“Over the years, Ronan is so small, we’ve worked together on a lot of different things,” he told Variety. “It’s always been easier for each other’s companies. This was really an extension of that. It was a big toy box to play.”
“Anemone” is not actually the first film team-up between Daniel and Ronan, the young Day Lewis, who were revealed on stage after the screening. Growing up, Ronan said, “We made a fake Nike commercial starring my pet turtle.”
When it comes to adding another duo to the nearest duo, the Day-Lewis men agreed that Bean was the only option to play Ray’s estranged brother. Before filming, Bean was invited to Ireland by Daniel Daylewis, and the two were caught up in a “Guinness and a pint of whiskey.”
“It was a great way to explore the situation,” Bean said. “We were doing so well, so it was important for me to get into the story of two brothers.”
Before “Anemone,” Daniel Day Lewis was last seen in Paul Thomas Anderson’s 2017 drama, “The Phantom Thread,” and was nominated for the sixth Oscar. The actor is considered one of his generation’s best, winning three Academy Awards for “My Left Foot” in 1989, “Be Will Blood” in 2007 and “Lincoln” in 2012.
He wanted to work with his son, so this time he decided to return to Hollywood. However, in his absence he always held his gratitude for the craft. “I never stopped loving my job,” Day Lewis told Variety. He said that among the things he missed most about acting, he found “my path to being part of the creation of a different world by working with groups of people.”
Day-Lewis has retired from acting in the past. After appearing in the 1997 sports drama Boxer, he suffered a long absence from the screen to become an Italian shoemaker. He returned to Martin Scorsese’s 2002 crime epic, “Gangs of New York,” as Bill the Butcher.
“Looking back now, he certainly did well to keep his mouth closed. It seems like a very epic creepy to talk about. I wasn’t planning on retiring,” he told Rolling Stone. “I quit that particular kind of job and I was able to do other jobs. Apparently, I’m being accused of retiring twice now. I wasn’t planning on retiring from anything!
