Daniel Day-Lewis, widely considered one of the greatest actors of his generation, has admitted he couldn’t stand ‘All-American’ hero John Wayne.

Affectionately known as ‘The Duke’ by fans, John Wayne built a huge following thanks to his legacy of 165 movies over 56 years, but behind the scenes, he was known for bad, often bullying behaviour.

Day-Lewis, a three-time Academy Award winner, openly admitted that he doesn’t enjoy Wayne’s films. “I do not like John Wayne, I find it hard to watch him,” Day-Lewis once said bluntly.

While he appreciates the work of Western icons like Clint Eastwood and Gary Cooper, actors he admired early in his career, Day-Lewis revealed that Wayne’s performances never resonated with him. He cited that his acting was always too static, too reliant on a singular persona rather than versatile, character-driven storytelling.

In stark contrast, Day-Lewis is renowned for his ability to disappear into roles, whether it’s Abraham Lincoln, an oil tycoon in There Will Be Blood, or a ruthless gang leader in Gangs of New York. His full immersion into each character stands in stark contrast to Wayne’s consistent, larger-than-life screen identity.

Interestingly, John Wayne himself was aware of his acting reputation. “Of course, they give me that John Wayne stuff so much, claim I always play the same role,” he once said. “To stay a star, you have to bring along some of your own personality.”

Early in his career, Day-Lewis gravitated toward performers who brought a certain emotional economy and stoicism to the screen. He spoke of all-night screenings of Clint Eastwood films and admired Eastwood’s “loose-limbed, mean, and taciturn” energy, traits he sought to emulate before developing his own singular style

John Wayne, real name Marion Robert Morrison, was best known for starring in Westerns and war movies. His most famous films include Stagecoach (1939), which made him a mainstream star, as well as True Grit, Rio Bravo and The Longest Day.

However, not all of his films were box office hits. The Conqueror, in which Duke played Genghis Khan after Marlon Brando backed out, may have made a profit at the box office but is now ranked as one of the worst films ever made. Widely believed to have been terribly miscast, even at the time, The New Times called the 1956 epic “an Oriental Western” with a script featuring “few unintentional laughs.”

John Wayne died of cancer in June 1979, aged 72.