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Jake Gyllenhaal
Gyllenhaal at Martha's Vineyard
Born	Jacob Benjamin Gyllenhaal
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1991 – present

Jacob Benjamin "Jake" Gyllenhaal (Template:Pron-en; born December 19, 1980) is an American actor. The son of director Stephen Gyllenhaal and screenwriter Naomi Foner, Gyllenhaal began acting at age ten. He has appeared in diverse roles since his first lead role in 1999's October Sky, followed by the 2001 indie cult hit Donnie Darko, in which he played a psychologically troubled teen and onscreen brother to his real-life sister, actress Maggie Gyllenhaal. In the 2004 blockbuster The Day After Tomorrow he portrayed a student caught in a cataclysmic global cooling event, alongside Dennis Quaid as his father. He then played against type as a frustrated Marine in Jarhead (2005). The same year, he won critical acclaim as Jack Twist in the film Brokeback Mountain opposite Heath Ledger.

Gyllenhaal has become an activist, promoting various political and social causes. He appeared in Rock the Vote advertising, campaigned for the Democratic Party in the 2004 election, and promoted environmental causes and the American Civil Liberties Union.

Early life and education

Acting career

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From Donnie Darko to the London stage

Donnie Darko, Gyllenhaal's second major film, was not a box office success upon its initial 2001 release, but eventually became a cult favorite. The film, directed by Richard Kelly, is set in 1988 and stars Gyllenhaal as a troubled teenager who, after narrowly escaping death, experiences visions of a 6 foot (1.8 m) tall rabbit named Frank who tells him that the world is coming to an end. Gyllenhaal's performance was well-received by critics; Gary Mairs of Culture Vulture wrote that "Gyllenhaal manages the difficult trick of seeming both blandly normal and profoundly disturbed, often within the same scene."

After the critical success of Donnie Darko, Gyllenhaal's next role was as the lead character in 2002's Highway, a film ignored by audiences and critics alike. His performance was described by one critic as "silly, cliched and straight to video." Gyllenhaal had more success starring opposite Jennifer Aniston in The Good Girl, which premiered at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival; he also starred in Lovely & Amazing with Catherine Keener. In both films he plays an unstable character who begins a reckless affair with an older woman. Gyllenhaal later described these as "teenager in transition" roles. Gyllenhaal later starred in the Touchstone Pictures romantic comedy Bubble Boy, which was loosely based on the story of David Vetter. The film portrays the title character's adventures as he pursues the love of his life before she marries the wrong man. The film was panned by critics, with one calling it an "empty-headed, chaotic, utterly tasteless atrocity".

Following Bubble Boy, Gyllenhaal starred opposite Dustin Hoffman, Susan Sarandon and Ellen Pompeo in Moonlight Mile, as a young man coping with the death of his fiancée and the grief of her parents. The story, which received mixed reviews, is loosely based on writer/director Brad Silberling's personal experiences following the murder of girlfriend Rebecca Schaeffer.

Gyllenhaal was almost cast as Spider-Man for Spider-Man 2 due to director Sam Raimi's concerns about original Spider-Man star Tobey Maguire's health. Maguire recovered, however, and the sequel was shot without Gyllenhaal. Instead, Gyllenhaal starred in the blockbuster The Day After Tomorrow in 2004, co-starring Dennis Quaid as his father.

In his theatrical debut Gyllenhaal starred on the London stage in Kenneth Lonergan's revival of This is Our Youth. Gyllenhaal said, "Every actor I look up to has done theatre work, so I knew I had to give it a try." The play, which had been a critical sensation on Broadway, ran for eight weeks in London's West End. Gyllenhaal received favorable critical reviews and an Evening Standard Theatre Award in the category "Outstanding Newcomer."

Brokeback Mountain and after

2005 was a prolific year for Gyllenhaal, who starred in the critically praised films Proof, Jarhead, and Brokeback Mountain. In Proof, featuring Gwyneth Paltrow and Anthony Hopkins, Gyllenhaal played a graduate student in mathematics who tries to convince Paltrow's character to publish a revolutionary proof to a problem puzzling the mathematicians' community. In Jarhead, Gyllenhaal played against his usual "sensitive yet disturbed" type by displaying an aggressive masculinity as a violent U.S. Marine during the first Gulf War. He also auditioned to be Batman for one of the biggest blockbusters Batman Begins and came close to getting the role but Christian Bale was ultimately chosen for it.

In Brokeback Mountain, Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger play young men who meet as sheep herders and embark upon a sexual relationship that begins in the summer of 1963 and continues until the death of Gyllenhaal's character in 1981. The film was often referred to in the media with the shorthand phrase "the gay cowboy movie," though there was differing opinion on the sexual orientation of the characters. The film won the Golden Lion prize at the Venice Film Festival. The film went on to win four Golden Globe Awards, four British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Awards, and three Academy Awards. Gyllenhaal was nominated for an Academy Award in the category of Best Supporting Actor for his performance, but lost to George Clooney for Syriana. Gyllenhaal also won the Best Supporting Actor BAFTA for the same role and received a Best Supporting Actor nomination and Best Film Ensemble nomination from the Screen Actors Guild. Also for Brokeback Mountain, he and Ledger won an MTV Movie Award for "Best Kiss" in 2006. Shortly after the 2006 Academy Awards, Gyllenhaal was invited to join the Academy in recognition of his acting career. Gyllenhaal was awarded the 2006 Young Artist Award for Artistic Excellence by The Americans for the Arts National Arts Awards for his role.

Gyllenhaal expressed mixed feelings about the experience of being directed by Ang Lee in Brokeback Mountain, but generally had more praise than criticism for Lee's directing style. While complaining of the way Lee tended to disconnect with his actors once filming began, Gyllenhaal praised his encouraging direction of the actors and sensitive approach to the material. At the Directors Guild of America Awards on January 28, 2006, Gyllenhaal also praised Lee for "his humbleness and his respect for everyone around him."

When asked about his kissing scenes with Heath Ledger in Brokeback Mountain, Gyllenhaal said, "As an actor, I think we need to embrace the times we feel most uncomfortable." When asked about the more intimate scenes with Ledger, Gyllenhaal likened them to "doing a sex scene with a woman I'm not particularly attracted to." Following the release of Brokeback Mountain, rumors circulated regarding the actor's sexual orientation. When asked about such gossip during an interview, Gyllenhaal said:

You know it's flattering when there's a rumor that says I'm bisexual. It means I can play more kinds of roles. I'm open to whatever people want to call me. I've never really been attracted to men sexually, but I don't think I would be afraid of it if it happened.

Gyllenhaal narrated the 2005 short animated film The Man Who Walked Between the Towers, based on Mordicai Gerstein's book of the same name about Philippe Petit's famous stunt. In January 2007, as host of Saturday Night Live, he put on a sparkly evening dress and sang "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" from the musical Dreamgirls for his opening monologue, dedicating the song to his "unique fan base... the fans of Brokeback."

In 2007, Gyllenhaal starred in David Fincher's Zodiac, which was based on a true story. He played Robert Graysmith, a San Francisco Chronicle cartoonist and author of two books about the Zodiac serial killer. Gyllenhaal starred opposite Meryl Streep, Alan Arkin, and Reese Witherspoon in the October 2007 release Rendition, a Gavin Hood-directed political thriller about the U.S. policy of extraordinary rendition. In 2009, he appeared with Tobey Maguire in Jim Sheridan's remake of Susanne Bier's 2004 Danish language film Brothers. His upcoming roles include the comedy Nailed, which he filmed in South Carolina with Jessica Biel, and Doug Liman's as yet untitled film about the race for lunar colonization.

Internationally viewed as a sex symbol, Gyllenhaal was named one of People magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People" in 2006. He was also listed in People's "Hottest Bachelors of 2006". In response to mainstream press lists like these, thousands of gay and bisexual men were polled for the 2007 and 2008 "AfterElton.com Hot 100 List." Gyllenhaal was ranked at #1 in both consecutive years. He was ranked at #2 on the Gay Wired Magazine poll of male actors who have played gay characters in movies.

On the show Entourage, Gyllenhaal, though not featured on screen, was the replacement for Vincent Chase in Aquaman 2 after Chase was fired. This was likely a reference to Spider-Man 2, when Gyllenhaal almost replaced Tobey Maguire.

Gyllenhaal played the lead role in the movie adaptation of the video game Prince of Persia: Sands of Time, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and released by Disney on May 28, 2010.

Personal life

Politics and other interests

Filmography

Template:Filmography table begin |- | 1991 | City Slickers | Danny Robbins | |- |rowspan="2"| 1993 | Josh and S.A.M. | Leon | |- | A Dangerous Woman | Edward | as Jacob Gyllenhaal |- | 1998 |Homegrown | Jake/Blue Kahan | |- | 1999 | October Sky |Homer Hickam Jr. | |- |rowspan="3"| 2001 | Donnie Darko | Donald J. "Donnie" Darko | |- | Bubble Boy | Jimmy Livingston | |- | Lovely & Amazing | Jordan | |- |rowspan="3"| 2002 | Highway | Pilot Kelson | |- | Moonlight Mile | Joe Nast | |- | The Good Girl | Thomas 'Holden' Worther | |- | 2003 | Abby Singer | Himself | (Cameo) |- | 2004 | The Day After Tomorrow | Sam Hall | |- |rowspan="3"| 2005 | Brokeback Mountain | Jack Twist | |- | Jarhead | Anthony "Swoff" Swofford | |- | Proof | Harold 'Hal' Dobbs | |- |rowspan="2"| 2007 | Zodiac | Robert Graysmith | |- | Rendition | Douglas Freeman | |- | 2009 | Brothers | Tommy Cahill | |- |rowspan="3"| 2010 | Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time | Prince Dastan | |- | Nailed | Howard Birdwell | post-production |- | Love and Other Drugs | Jamie Reidy | post-production |- | 2011 | Source Code | Colter | post-production |- |}

Awards

References

1. Snider, Mike (February 2, 2005), "'Darko' takes a long, strange trip",USA Today. Retrieved September 19, 2006.
2. Kois, Dan (July 23, 2004), "Everything you were afraid to ask about "Donnie Darko"",Salon.com. Retrieved September 19, 2006.
3. Mairs, Gary, "Donnie Darko review". Archived from the original on 2006-06-15.,CultureVulture.net. Retrieved September 21, 2006.
4. Wills, Dominic (2006), "Jake Gyllenhaal biography", Tiscali.com, page 7. Retrieved September 16, 2006.
5. Hubbell, Anne (January 16, 2002), "Director, writer talk about 'The Good Girl'", CNN Entertainment. Retrieved September 16, 2006.
6. Michael, David (October 21, 2002), BBC Films. Retrieved September 19, 2006.
7. Gonzalez, Ed (2001), Slant Magazine review. Retrieved September 19, 2006.
8. Swietek, Frank, Bubble Boy Review, oneguysopinion.com. Retrieved September 21, 2006.
9. RottenTomatoes.com compilation of critical reviews. Retrieved September 21, 2006.
10. Murray, Rebecca (2006), "Jake Gyllenhaal and Brad Silberling Talk About "Moonlight Mile"", About.com. Retrieved September 19, 2006.
11. Otto, Jeff. "An Interview with Tobey Maguire." IGN, July 23, 2003. Retrieved on 2007-08-14.
12. Morales, Wilson (June 2004), "Spiderman 2: An Interview with Sam Raimi", Blackfilm.com. Retrieved September 19, 2006.
13. Cite error: The named reference Jakesprogress was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
14. Mottram, James (May 12, 2004), BBC Film. Retrieved September 19, 2006.
15. Billington, Michael (March 18, 2002), This Is Our Youth review, The Guardian. Retrieved September 19, 2006.
16. Gritten, David (April 13, 2002), "Fast growing up to be famous", The Telegraph. Retrieved September 19, 2006.
17. Loveridge, Lizzie (March 2002), "A CurtainUp London Review: This is Our Youth", CurtainUp.com. Retrieved September 21, 2006.
18. Albemarle-London, Albemarle. Retrieved September 19, 2006.
19. Silverman, Stephen M. Jake Gyllenhaal: The New Batman?, People, September 3, 2003. Retrieved December 14, 2009.
20. Otto, Jeff. "David S. Goyer Talks Batman, Iron Man, Comics and More - Movies Feature at IGN". Movies.ign.com. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
21. ^ Hiscock, John (December 12, 2005), " The one Jake: why Gyllenhaal spells success",The Telegraph. Retrieved November 6, 2006.
22. Cheshire, Godfrey (January 4, 2006). "Somewhere over the rainbow". The Independent Weekly. Retrieved 2008-09-07.
23. "Academy Invites 120 to Membership" (Press release). Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. July 6, 2006. Retrieved 2008-09-07.
24. Flowers, Michelle (October 18, 2006), Gyllenhaal Gets Nod from Americans for the Arts, backstage.com. Retrieved November 4, 2006.
25. Wenn (December 20, 2005), Hollywood.com. Retrieved September 29, 2006.
26. Cavagna, Carla (December 2005), "Interview: Jake Gyllenhaal", aboutfilm.com. Retrieved September 19, 2006.
27. CBS news, AP, (January 26, 2005), "'Brokeback' Director Grabs Top Award". Retrieved September 29, 2006.
28. Denizet-Lewis, Benoit "Jake", Details. Retrieved September 19, 2006. Archived 2007-09-30 at the Wayback Machine
29. "All the latest interviews, reviews and awards for Brokeback Mountain.", GLAAD. Retrieved September 19, 2006. Archived 2006-10-02 at the Wayback Machine
30. "Amazon ad listing Gyllenhaal as star and narrator". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
31. Andrew Carnegie Medal Winner, 2007. Author/Illustrator Mo Willems and Weston Woods Studios. Association for Library Service to Children. Retrieved September 19, 2006.
32. Edgeboston.com (January 17, 2007), YouTube Extras: Jake as Effie, and a Musical "Scrubs". Retrieved January 27, 2007.
33. Saturday Night Live Opening Monologue, .
34. Mottram, James (December 11, 2005), "Jake's Progress", Sunday Herald. Retrieved September 19, 2006.
35. Mcnary, Dave, Fleming, Michael (September 26, 2006), "New Line renders cast", Variety.com. Retrieved November 16, 2006.
36. Siegel, Tatiana (October 2, 2007), "Natalie Portman to star in 'Brothers'", Variety.com. Retrieved October 4, 2007.
37. ^ Hambrick, Greg (2008). "SC Statehouse to Double as Capitol Hill; Gyllenhaal and Biel to Star". Charleston City Paper. Retrieved 2008-10-08.
38. Siegel, Tatiana (October 8, 2007), Jake Gyllenhaal flies to the 'Moon', Variety.com. Retrieved October 10, 2007.
39. People Magazine, "50 Most Beautiful People", April 28, 2006.
40. People magazine, (November 10, 2005), "Ten Things to Love about Jake". Retrieved September 19, 2006.
41. Jenson, Michael. (July 23, 2007), "The AfterElton.com Hot 100 List", AfterElton. Retrieved July 24, 2007.
42. "GayWired Top Ten Celebrity Countdown Results. 'Gay 4 Pay 2'". Gaywired.com. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
43. "Jake Gyllenhaal - Young Hollywood Awards - HL". YHA Official site. Retrieved 2010-07-24.
44. "National Arts Awards". ArtsUSA.org. Retrieved 2007-11-11.

External links

2. Part 2

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• 1980 births
• Living people
• American Jews
• American film actors
• American television actors
• American stage actors
• American people of Swedish descent
• BAFTA winners (people)
• BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor
• California Democrats
• Columbia University alumni
• Jewish actors
• MTV Movie Award winners
• Actors from Los Angeles, California
• Swedish nobility
• American actors of Swedish descent