Despite meeting with Steven Spielberg, Daniel Day-Lewis is not making a surprise return to acting

Earlier this year, Daniel Day-Lewis was spotted meeting up with his Lincoln director Steven Spielberg and his My Left Foot director Jim Sheridan, predictably leading to speculation that Day-Lewis was being coaxed out of retirement—why else would directors talk to an actor? For fun? To ask Day-Lewis about his incredible outfit, which made him look like the coolest Larry David ever? (Seriously, check out the paparazzi photos on this Daily Mail story.)

Unfortunately, it’s not any of those things. According to Deadline, which actually spoke with Sheridan, the three of them were talking about a project about the Kennedy family that Sheridan has always wanted to do, and if Day-Lewis were going to be involved, it would be “as an executive producer, not as an actor.” He also says that they were “just talking” and that the project (which would be about family patriarch Joseph Kennedy) wasn’t actually moving forward, so it seems like this was just three dudes hanging out, possibly having lunch (there are conflicting reports about that, for some reason).

Day-Lewis retired from acting in 2017 after making Phantom Thread, despite having never achieved the greatest honor an actor can achieve (he has three Oscars, but he unfortunately never made it into the Marvel Cinematic Universe). He has only made a handful of public appearances since then, which is probably a big reason why this surprise meet-up/possible lunch with Sheridan and Spielberg seemed so exciting.

But, even if nothing comes of this in terms of the showbiz world, maybe it foreshadows an exciting new future where Daniel Day-Lewis occasionally goes out to lunch with the famous directors he worked with as an actor. Just think: Daniel Day-Lewis and Marty Scorsese, possibly meeting for lunch! Daniel Day-Lewis and Michael Mann thinking about what they should order! Daniel Day-Lewis and Paul Thomas Anderson, both reaching for the check! Wow!