Jan 13, 2008, 13:30 GMT
Daniel Day-Lewis is sick of people thinking his acting is a type of "sophisticated sadomasochism".
Daniel Day-Lewis - © Lee Roth / RothStock / PR Photos
The 'There Will Be Blood' star - who is renowned for his bizarre techniques when trying to get himself into character for his roles - insists his methods are misrepresented.
He told Empire magazine: "People think I'm into some form of sophisticated sadomasochism most of the time, but that's not my experience at all. It is a thoroughly joyful thing to work.
"If you are trying to imagine a world, you use whatever means you can to stimulate the imagination. That's the basis of method acting."
Daniel famously learned to lower the needle of a gramophone onto a record with his feet for his role as cerebral palsy sufferer Christy Brown - who could only move his left foot - in 'My Left Foot'.
The actor - who won the Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of Brown - lived in a forest to prepare for 'Last of the Mohicans' and locked himself up and was hosed down with freezing cold water to prepare for his role as a wrongly imprisoned terrorist in the movie 'In The Name Of The Father'.
'There Will Be Blood', in which Daniel plays ruthless oil prospector Daniel Plainview at the turn of the 20th century, is due to hit cinema screens next month.
(C) BANG Media International
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