SEE: Daniel Day-Lewis Jumps Out of Retirement

Daniel Day-Lewis has officially ended his eight-year retirement from acting with the release of the first photo from his upcoming film “Anemone,” which will showcase his son Ronan Day-Lewis making his feature directorial debut.

The 68-year-old three-time Oscar winner appears transformed in the newly released image, sporting a thick gray mustache and salt-and-pepper hair for his role as an estranged hermit living in the woods of Northern England. The project is a special collaboration between father and son, who co-wrote the screenplay together.

A Family Drama with Personal Stakes

“Anemone” follows the story of a middle-aged man played by Sean Bean who “sets out from his suburban home on a journey into the woods, where he reconnects with his estranged hermit brother (Day-Lewis),” according to the official synopsis from Film at Lincoln Center. “Bonded by a mysterious, complicated past, the men share a fraught, if occasionally tender relationship — one that was forever altered by shattering events decades earlier.”

The film is being described as “an absorbing family drama about lives undone by seemingly irreconcilable legacies of political and personal violence,” according to The Hollywood Reporter. The supporting cast includes Samantha Morton, Samuel Bottomley, and Safia Oakley-Green, with cinematography by Ben Fordesman.

“An emotional powerhouse, this directorial debut is assured in both small details and grand gestures as it charts the path toward familial redemption against all odds,” the synopsis continues.

The project will have its world premiere at The New York Film Festival, which runs from September 26 through October 13, marking Day-Lewis’s return to the spotlight after his last film appearance in 2017’s “Phantom Thread.”

The Decision to Return

Day-Lewis had made headlines in 2017 when he announced his retirement from acting following “Phantom Thread.” He portrayed Reynolds Woodcock in the film and received an Oscar nomination for Best Actor. His spokesperson issued a definitive statement at the time: “Daniel Day-Lewis will no longer be working as an actor. He is immensely grateful to all of his collaborators and audiences over the many years. This is a private decision and neither he nor his representatives will make any further comment on this subject.”

In a subsequent interview with W Magazine, Day-Lewis reflected on his decision to step away from Hollywood. “I knew it was uncharacteristic to put out a statement. But I did want to draw a line,” he explained. “I didn’t want to get sucked back into another project. All my life, I’ve mouthed off about how I should stop acting, and I don’t know why it was different this time, but the impulse to quit took root in me, and that became a compulsion.”

The actor had expressed doubts about his craft, stating, “I need to believe in the value of what I’m doing. The work can seem vital. Irresistible, even. And if an audience believes it, that should be good enough for me. But, lately, it isn’t.”

However, the opportunity to work with his son Ronan appears to have drawn him back. Day-Lewis shares Ronan, 27, and son Cashel, 23, with wife Rebecca Miller. He also has an eldest son, Gabriel-Kane, 30, with ex-girlfriend Isabelle Adjani.

Whether this collaboration with his son signals a broader return to acting or represents a one-time project remains unclear, though director Martin Scorsese has hinted at potential future collaborations with the legendary actor.