Daniel Day-Lewis

Born: 1957-04-29

Daniel Day-Lewis (born 29 April 1957) is a retired actor of British and Irish citizenship. Often described as one of the greatest actors in the history of cinema, he received numerous accolades throughout his career which spanned over four decades, including three Academy Awards, four BAFTA Awards, three Screen Actors Guild Awards and two Golden Globe Awards. The actor excelled on stage at the National Youth Theatre before being accepted at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which he attended for three years. Despite his traditional training at the Bristol Old Vic, he is considered a method actor, known for his constant devotion to and research of his roles. Protective of his private life, he rarely grants interviews, and makes very few public appearances. Day-Lewis shifted between theatre and film for most of the early 1980s, joining the Royal Shakespeare Company and playing Romeo Montague in Romeo and Juliet and Flute in A Midsummer Night's Dream. Playing the title role in Hamlet at the National Theatre in London in 1989, he left the stage midway through a performance after breaking down during a scene where the ghost of Hamlet's father appears before him—this was his last appearance on the stage. After supporting film roles in Gandhi (1982), and The Bounty (1984), he earned acclaim for his breakthrough performances in My Beautiful Laundrette (1985), A Room with a View (1985), and The Unbearable Lightness of Being (1988). He earned Academy Awards for his roles in My Left Foot (1989), There Will Be Blood (2007), and Lincoln (2012). His other Oscar-nominated roles were in In the Name of the Father (1993), Gangs of New York (2002), and Phantom Thread (2017). Other notable films include The Last of the Mohicans (1992), The Age of Innocence (1993), The Crucible (1996), and The Boxer (1997). He retired from acting from 1997 to 2000, taking up a new profession as an apprentice shoe-maker in Italy. Although he returned to acting, he announced his retirement again in 2017.


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Gangs of New York

as Bill "The Butcher" Cutting
Released: 2002-12-14

In 1863, Amsterdam Vallon returns to the Five Points of America to seek vengeance against the...

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There Will Be Blood

as Daniel Plainview
Released: 2007-12-26

Ruthless silver miner, turned oil prospector, Daniel Plainview, moves to oil-rich California....

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The Bounty

as John Fryer
Released: 1984-05-04

The familiar story of Lieutenant Bligh, whose cruelty leads to a mutiny on his ship. This...

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The Last of the Mohicans

as Hawkeye
Released: 1992-08-26

In war-torn colonial America, in the midst of a bloody battle between British, the French and...

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as Abraham Lincoln
Released: 2012-11-09

The revealing story of the 16th US President's tumultuous final months in office. In a nation...

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Phantom Thread

as Reynolds Woodcock
Released: 2017-12-25

In 1950s London, renowned British dressmaker Reynolds Woodcock comes across Alma, a young,...

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as Colin
Released: 1982-12-01

In the early years of the 20th century, Mohandas K. Gandhi, a British-trained lawyer, forsakes...

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The Unbearable Lightness of Being

as Tomas
Released: 1988-02-05

Successful surgeon Tomas leaves Prague for an operation, meets a young photographer named...

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In the Name of the Father

as Gerry Conlon
Released: 1993-12-12

A small time thief from Belfast, Gerry Conlon, is falsely implicated in the IRA bombing of a pub...

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The Age of Innocence

as Newland Archer
Released: 1993-09-10

In 19th century New York high society, a young lawyer falls in love with a woman separated from...

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My Left Foot: The Story of Christy Brown

as Christy Brown
Released: 1989-04-07

No one expects much from Christy Brown, a boy with cerebral palsy born into a working-class...

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The Ballad of Jack and Rose

as Jack Slavin
Released: 2005-02-25

Jack Slavin is an environmentalist with a heart condition who lives with his daughter, Rose, on...

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A Room with a View

as Cecil Vyse
Released: 1985-12-13

When Lucy Honeychurch and chaperon Charlotte Bartlett find themselves in Florence with rooms...

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The Boxer

as Danny Flynn
Released: 1997-12-31

Nineteen-year-old Danny Flynn is imprisoned for his involvement with the I.R.A. in Belfast. He...

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The Crucible

as John Proctor
Released: 1996-11-27

A Salem resident attempts to frame her ex-lover's wife for being a witch in the middle of the...

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Nine

as Guido Contini
Released: 2009-12-03

Arrogant, self-centered movie director Guido Contini finds himself struggling to find meaning,...

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And the Oscar Goes To...

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2014-02-01

The story of the gold-plated statuette that became the film industry's most coveted prize, AND...

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My Beautiful Laundrette

as Johnny Burfoot
Released: 1985-11-16

A Pakistani Briton renovates a rundown laundrette with his male lover while dealing with drama...

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Spielberg

as Self
Released: 2017-10-05

A documentary on the life and career of one of the most influential film directors of all time,...

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Sunday Bloody Sunday

as Child Vandal (uncredited)
Released: 1971-07-01

Recently divorced career woman Alex Greville begins a romantic relationship with glamorous mod...

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Stars & Bars

as Henderson Dores
Released: 1988-03-18

A British art expert leaves New York to buy a long-lost Renoir from a Georgia eccentric.

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Daniel Day-Lewis: The Hollywood Genius

as Self (archive footage)
Released: 2021-10-10

He is the only actor in the history of cinema to have won three Oscars. Known for the dramatic...

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A Man's Story

as Self
Released: 2011-10-08

Documentary about British fashion designer Ozwald Boateng.

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Forever Ealing

as Narrator (voice)
Released: 2002-12-05

This is a history of the England's Ealing Film Studios, from its beginnings in 1902. It follows...

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Access to the Danger Zone

as Narrator (voice)
Released: 2012-06-01

Directed by Peter Casaer and narrated by Daniel Day-Lewis, this documentary provides a harrowing...

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Innocence and Experience: The Making of 'The Age of Innocence'

as Self
Released: 1993-09-01

A documentary about the making of director Martin Scorsese's 1993 film adaptation of Edith...

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Artemis '81

as Library Student
Released: 1981-12-29

Paranormal novelist Gideon Harlax is drawn into a battle between the forces of good, represented...

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The Insurance Man

as Kafka
Released: 1986-02-22

Franz, a young man, works in a dye factory in Prague. One day he notices a skin-rash, like...

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Making The Last of the Mohicans

as Self
Released: 2010-10-03

Interviews with the cast and crew of the 1992 Michael Mann film.

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Nanou

as Max
Released: 1987-02-27

A young British photography student travelling in France meets up with a free thinking,...

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Abby Singer

as Daniel Day-Lewis (uncredited)
Released: 2003-10-28

Chronicles the life of Curtis Clemins, who is torn between the love of his life and...

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Uncovering the Real Gangs of New York

as Self
Released: 2003-07-01

This brief look at mid nineteenth century New York City, a period of mass immigration, street...

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Eversmile New Jersey

as Dr. Fergus O'Connell
Released: 1989-09-11

Traveling dentist O'Connell traverses South America on his motorcycle for the 'Eversmile'...

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Lincoln: An American Journey

as Self
Released: 2013-01-16

Documentary on the making of Steven Spielberg's "Lincoln" (2012).

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Dangerous Corner

as Gordon Whitehouse
Released: 1983-05-22

An unexpected suicide prompts much speculation about honesty and theft.

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How Many Miles to Babylon?

as Alex Moore
Released: 1982-02-26

Wealthy Alexander Moore and working-class Jerry Crowe are childhood friends and in 1914 find...

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BBC Play of the Month

as Gordon Whitehouse
First aired: 1965-10-19

Play of the Month is a BBC television anthology series featuring productions of classic and...

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The Oscars

as Self
First aired: 1953-03-19

An annual American awards ceremony honoring cinematic achievements in the film industry. The...

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Shoestring

as uncredited
First aired: 1979-09-30

Shoestring was a BBC television show set in Bristol. It featured a private detective with his...

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Shoestring

as DJ
First aired: 1979-09-30

Shoestring was a BBC television show set in Bristol. It featured a private detective with his...

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My Brother Jonathan

as Jonathan Dakers
First aired: 1985-08-12

My Brother Jonathan is a 1985 BBC five part mini-series that relates the story of an idealistic...

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