Daniel Day Lewis Photo as Abraham Lincoln Hits the Web

Daniel Day Lewis is known for completely becoming the characters he takes on, and it looks like it will be no different when he plays the 16th president of the United States in Steven Spielberg’s biopic, Lincoln.

While the production has been filming for more than a month, there have not been any photos leaked out –- until now.

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Lewis, who has been known to stay in character while filming whether the cameras are rolling or not, was captured in his Abe Lincoln face makeup in a photo in Richmond, Virginia.

The photo, tweeted out by Michael Phillips, shows Lewis in his full-on Abe Lincoln beard, although he is not wearing the related costume. Lewis seems to be taking a break and having lunch in a restaurant in the photo.

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The biopic has a stellar cast, including Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Sally Field, Tommy Lee Jones, John Hawkes, James Spader, Tim Blake Nelson, Hal Holbrook and David Strathairn. The story is based on Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin and adapted by Tony Kushner. It follows Lincoln’s journey to abolish slavery and end the Civil War.

Speilberg recently said that the project will not be released until after the 2012 presidential election, to keep it out of the political discourse. It will be released by Disney’s Touchstone label.