Daniel Day-Lewis didn't think his singing and dancing was good enough to star in new musical movie “Nine.”

The Oscar-winning actor and Irish citizen, who plays Italian film director Guido Contini in the hotly-anticipated film, had a crisis of confidence and asked the director Rob Marshall if there was anyone else who could take his role, because he had no confidence in his voice.

Day-Lewis, who lives in Wicklow, Ireland, said: "I did say to Rob in the early stages, 'Is there anyway of getting out of this? I have a list of actors who could do it tomorrow!' He tried to convince me I could sing and I said, 'You've no idea if I can sing or not!'

"I sang feebly a couple of times, and on the grounds of that Rob managed to convince me it was worth pursuing."

The 52-year-old actor, who is famous for his method acting, also joked that dancing was difficult because his body is so "creaky.”

"I can do a lot of stuff, I can climb, I can run, I can cycle, I can box, but I can't dance,” the “My Left Foot” star said.

"I used a lot of 3-in-1 to lubricate those stiff joints. It's not natural grace - that's sheer effort of will. My limbs are a mass of scar tissue through years of doing things I shouldn't have."

Day-Lewis stars in “Nine” alongside Penelope Cruz, Dame Judi Dench, Marion Cotillard and Nicole Kidman.

Daniel Day-Lewis in "Nine"