“My dad’s work had always been behind a curtain in a way for me, so it was a really unique experience to see that happen from such a front-row seat.”

Ronan Day-Lewis

The 27-year-old painter directs his first feature film, Anemone, casting his father, Daniel Day-Lewis, in his first role since retiring in 2017

By Tobias Grey

Ronan Day-Lewis was just seven when he first saw his father disappear into character on the sun-bleached set of There Will Be Blood (2007) in Marfa, Texas. But even witnessing Daniel Plainview in full milkshake-sucking mode did not prepare him for the raw, intimate challenge of directing Daniel Day-Lewis nearly two decades later, in his haunting feature debut, Anemone.

“My dad’s work had always been behind a curtain in a way for me,” Ronan, now 27, explained in a recent video call. “So it was a really unique experience to see that happen from such a front-row seat.”