20 Iconic Movie Scenes That Nearly Killed Their Stars
20. Daniel Day-Lewis, Gangs of New York
He is among the pickiest actors in Hollywood, often going years in between movies, carefully sifting through script after script to find the perfect one.
When he finally settles on a project, Day-Lewis goes into overdrive, altering his body, his attitude and his life to better suit his character.
He famously remained in a wheelchair for months while filming the Oscar-winner “My Left Foot”, causing two of his ribs to crack from his perpetually hunched over position. For “The Last Mohican” he lived in the forest for weeks, surviving off the land, emerging only to film scenes. But it was his acclaimed role in “Gangs of New York” that nearly cost him his life.
Day-Lewis portrays Bill “The Butcher” Cutting, a murderous kingpin and gang leader with a penchant for knives. He apprenticed as a butcher for the role and became adept at throwing knives accurately, as well as maintaining a perfect New York accent for the duration of filming.
He refused to wear modern clothes, preferring to stay in his period accurate waistcoats and casual wear. He contracted pneumonia due to this, and he refused to seek medical attention, fearing it was not “accurate for the time”. It was only upon learning he would die without treatment that he decided to take some medicine.
