Molly Lambert

“I am thy father’s spirit”

Daniel Day-Lewis returned to the theater as Hamlet at the National Theatre, but collapsed in the middle of a scene where the ghost of Hamlet’s father first appears to his son. He began sobbing uncontrollably and refused to go back on stage afterwards. 

His understudy finished what little was left of the production’s run. One rumour following the incident was that Day-Lewis had seen the ghost of his own father, although the incident was officially attributed to exhaustion. He confirmed on a British chat show that this rumour was true. He has not appeared on stage since.