What is method acting? This technique is as revered as it is infamous nowadays, making it more timely than ever to learn about it. In broad terms, it's a system that some actors use when approaching a role, where they try to inhabit their character's psyche and fully understand their motivations and emotions. To achieve this, they may do all sorts of wild things, from eating a live cockroach (like Nicolas Cage for Vampire's Kiss) to smoking tens of thousands of dollars' worth of cigars (like Gary Oldman for Darkest Hour).

The Method is much more complex than that, with a long history of evolution, but that's basically the gist of it. It's undoubtedly an effective technique, as proved by artists like Daniel Day-Lewis and Marlon Brando, but not all actors in the industry hold it in such high esteem. Some, like Mads Mikkelsen and Robert Pattinson, haven't been hesitant to share their disregard for the system and how some actors take it too far.

Updated on June 30, 2023, by Diego Pineda Pacheco:

As movies evolve, so does acting. As the craft changes, more and more actors come to question how things have been done in the past, including method acting. The Method is by no means wrong in itself, but simply a different kind of tool for actors to approach their characters. However, it's undeniable that it's often taken to unsettling extremes.

12 Sebastian Stan

"A Narcissistic, Kind of Self-Indulgent Thing"

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Image via Hulu

Sebastian Stan, known best as the Winter Soldier in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, recently gained notoriety for his transformation into Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee in Hulu's Pam & Tommy. The Method had nothing to do with that transformation, however, as Stan has expressed his rejection of it.

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"I don't believe in creating chaos for the purposes of [acting]," Stan told the In the Envelope podcast. He criticized performers who used this chaos to artificially create tension in scenes, calling that an "irresponsible, narcissistic, kind of self-indulgent thing."

11 Mads Mikkelsen

"It's Just Pretentious"

Mads Mikkelsen as Voller in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
Image via Lucasfilm

Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen has had a lot on his plate lately, appearing in films like Doctor Strange, Rogue One, and more recently, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. When asked by GQ Magazine about his thoughts on method acting, Mikkelsen made his opinion clear right off the bat: "It's bulls**t," he said.

The actor expressed his disapproval of performers who never broke character, implying that their system is pointless and unimpressive. He diligently prepares for his roles but doesn't believe that taking it any further is necessary, stating simply that "it's just pretentious." Whatever his method is, it certainly allows Mikkelsen to always offer great performances.

10 Will Poulter

"An Excuse for Inappropriate Behavior"

Will Poulter as Adam Warlock in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Image via Marvel Studios

Will Poulter's fruitful career saw its start when he was just 14 years old. Since then, there has been nowhere to go but up for him, as he's gone on to appear in franchises as big as the MCU in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Even if he's not a huge star yet, his acting style is unique and loved by audiences.

In a conversation with IndieWire, Poulter argued that as long as an actor's method doesn't afflict others, it's all fair game. But when method acting is "used as an excuse for inappropriate behavior," the end certainly doesn't justify the means.

9 Laurence Olivier

"Everyone Has Their Own Method"

Joan Fontaine and Laurence Olivier in 'Rebecca'
Image via United Artists

Laurence Olivier was one of the most acclaimed actors of the 20th century, best known for his takes on Shakespearean roles and his work in films like Marathon Man and Rebecca. His technique was as refined as you'd expect, and he considered the Method as nothing more than that — just another method.

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A funny story purports that, while working on Marathon Man, Dustin Hoffman (a method actor) stayed up for three full days to play a sleep-deprived character. Upon learning of this, The Guardian says that Olivier responded, "My dear boy, why don't you just try acting?"

8 Charlize Theron

"I Was Just Exhausted"

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Image via Newmarket Films

Charlize Theron had tried the Method before, in films like The Devil's Advocate and Monster (the latter of which earned her an Academy Award), but she told the Los Angeles Times that she found it exhausting.

Instead, Theron reports that discovering that method acting was not for her was great, because she can now spend more time and energy on her characters, "living and breathing in the moment" with them. She found that the Method was so tiresome for her that it didn't allow her to go deep into the heart of her roles.

7 David Harbour

"Not Only Is That Stuff Silly, It's Dangerous"

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Image via Netflix

Popularized by the über-successful Netflix original Stranger Things, David Harbour has gone on to work on some equally massive films. He was trained in classical American method acting, but told Variety that he doesn't believe in that stuff anymore.

Harbour has proved on repeated occasions that he's great at what he does, promising to become a huge action star in the future. He has done all that without having to recur to the Method, which he thinks "sounds like nonsense" and is both "silly" and "dangerous."

6 Robert Pattinson

"They Only Use It When They're Playing an A-Hole"

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Image via Warner Bros. Pictures

Talking to Jennifer Lopez for Variety's Actors on Actors series about his wild performance in The Lighthouse, Robert Pattinson (also known for his work on the Twilight saga and The Batman) playfully criticized the Method, claiming that actors only use it "when they're playing an a-hole."

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Pattinson, making it abundantly clear that method acting isn't something he would ever be interested in trying, talked about why he finds the technique so unappealing. "I need to know it ends," he told Lopez, referring to actors who stay in character and talking about how he wouldn't be able to handle it if he had to take a role like the one he played in The Lighthouse home with him.

5 Spencer Tracy

"I'm Too Talented to Care"

Spencer Tracy in 'Boys Town', wearing a priest's clothes
Image via Loew's Inc.

Spencer Tracy, renowned for his versatility and naturalistic style, was a highly praised American actor. He was the first to win two back-to-back acting Oscars (for Captains Courageous in 1938 and Boys Town in 1939), an achievement that has since only been reached by Tom Hanks.

He is quoted on IMDb as having said, "The kids keep telling me I should try this new 'method acting' but I'm too old, I'm too tired, and I'm too talented to care." He certainly earned the right to say that, as his career was one of the most prolific of any actor of his generation.

4 Samuel L. Jackson

"When I Go to Work, I Have Fun"

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Image via Disney+

Samuel L. Jackson is the kind of actor who serves as a badge of guaranteed quality. If he's in a movie or TV show (such as Secret Invasion, one of the best new shows to stream on Disney+), you can rest assured that at the very least, you're going to have a good time.

The way that Jackson achieves this level of quality across all his body of work is, it seems, by just having fun and loving what he does. According to FandomWire, the actor has spoken out against method acting on a few occasions, stating that when he works with people excessively invested in their role, "it doesn't feel like they're having a good time," which he thinks is the whole point of a job like acting.

3 John Cassavetes

"More a Form of Psychotherapy Than of Acting"

John Cassavetes in 'The Dirty Dozen', next to fellow soldiers
Image via Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

John Cassavetes, known for his phenomenal work as an actor in films like The Dirty Dozen and as a director of films like A Woman Under the Influence, was highly vocal about his contempt for method acting.

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The artist accused the Method in the book Cassavetes on Cassavetes of being lazy, narcissistic, and insipid, even going so far as to say that it produced bad performances. From Cassavetes's point of view, acting could be more playful and zany instead of taking itself so seriously. For him, acting should be an expression of cheerfulness.

2 Martin Freeman

"No Longer a Craft and a Job"

Martin Freeman as Bilbo Baggins holding the One Ring in The Hobbit- The Battle of the Five Armies
Image via Warner Bros. Pictures

Known for his work in shows like Sherlock and films like The Hobbit trilogy, British actor Martin Freeman leaves no room for doubt that he doesn't approve of many famous method actors. Talking on the Off Menu podcast, he briefly touched on the topic.

Freeman thinks that method acting is much more amateurish and "academic" than practical because an actor losing themselves in a role detracts from the value of acting as a craft. He condemned method performances like Jim Carrey's infamous one in Man on the Moon, calling them "aggrandizing, selfish, [and] narcissistic."

1 Toni Collette

"It's Utter Wankery"

Toni Collette with a scared expression in Hereditary
Image via A24

In conversation with David Poland, famed Australian actress Toni Collette (acclaimed for her work on Hereditary and The Sixth Sense) talked about her more instinctive style of preparing for roles, and used the opportunity to voice her thoughts on method acting. They were not positive.

"I think that is actually total bulls***t," she said when asked whether she carried her characters throughout the production of her films. She believes that it's inevitable for actors to take parts of their characters with them as they dive deep into their psyche, but she thinks that doing so in an overt way is simply tasteless.

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