Daniel Day-Lewis Says He Should’ve Kept His ‘Mouth Shut’ About 1 Career Moment

One would think three-time Oscar winner Daniel Day-Lewis has few career regrets. Still, he revealed in a new Rolling Stone interview Wednesday that his decision to retire — only to have to field endless questions about his upcoming comeback — is definitely among them.

“I would have done well to just keep my mouth shut, for sure,” he told the outlet with a laugh. “It just seems like such grandiose gibberish to talk about. I never intended to retire, really. I just stopped doing that particular type of work so I could do some other work.”

Day-Lewis announced his retirement to utter shock in 2017 from fans, critics and cinephiles. With multiple accolades and a then-seemingly final performance in Paul Thomas Anderson’s “Phantom Thread” en route to theaters, it appeared to be a permanent adieu.

The acting legend explained at the time that he no longer believed in “the value” of his work, and that quitting was something he “had to” do. But it was revealed last year that Day-Lewis had reversed course and was cast in the lead of a psychological drama.

“Anemone” is not only written and directed by the actor’s son Ronan Day-Lewis, but co-written by the thespian himself. It centers on an English veteran (Sean Bean) who reunites with his brother (Day-Lewis), who has lived in the woods in full isolation for 20 years.

While his return might surprise some, Day-Lewis says acting itself was never an issue.

“I never, ever stopped loving the work,” he told Rolling Stone. “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. There’s something about that process that left me feeling hollowed out at the end of it.”

With his decades of experience, the actor told Rolling Stone he was more than a little familiar with this cycle, saying that, typically, the emotional exhaustion of performing a role is followed by “a regeneration” of sorts.

“And it was only really in the last experience [making The Phantom Thread] that I began to feel quite strongly that maybe there wouldn’t be that regeneration anymore,” he said. “That I just probably should just keep away from it, because I didn’t have anything else to offer.”

It appears the actor still has something left in the tank, however, if the pulse-pounding “Anemone” trailer is any indication. Even during this window of introspection, Day-Lewis has also retained a sense of humor about the choices he’s made.

“Apparently, I’ve been accused of retiring twice now,” he joked. “I never meant to retire from anything! I just wanted to work on something else for a while. And so I think I was at such a low ebb, I thought…”