Daniel Day-Lewis Speaks Out on Coming Out of Retirement

The Oscar-winning actor is starring in a film he co-wrote with his son, eight years after what was meant to be his final onscreen performance. He shared his reasons returning while promoting the upcoming feature.

Daniel Day-Lewis has come out of retirement to star in the new riveting drama, "Anemone." The film, which he co-wrote with his son Ronan Day-Lewis, draws inspiration from their real-life father-son relationship.

It also serves as Ronan's directorial debut and Daniel's first onscreen appearance in nearly eight years. The decorated actor last appeared on the big screen in Paul Thomas Anderson's 2017 drama, "Phantom Thread."

Speaking about his return, Daniel said he never intended to announce his retirement. "Looking back on it now — I would have done well to just keep my mouth shut, for sure," he said of his earlier comments about stepping away from acting.

"It just seems like such grandiose gibberish to talk about. I never intended to retire, really," he continued. "I just stopped doing that particular type of work so I could do some other work."

"I never, you know… Apparently, I've been accused of retiring twice now. I never meant to retire from anything! I just wanted to work on something else for a while," he added.

Daniel also revealed he felt a kind of "sadness" after he walked away from acting. "I had some residual sadness because I knew Ronan was going to go on to make films, and I was walking away from that," he reflected.

"It was just kind of a low-level fear, [an] anxiety about re-engaging with the business of filmmaking. The work was always something I loved," he said. "But there were aspects of the way of life that went with it that I’d never come to terms with — from the day I started out to today."

"Anemone" is slated for release on Friday, October 3.