Jake Gyllenhaal has been acting since he was a child. He first appeared in City Slickers. Later, he played parts in October Sky and Donnie Darko.
Jake was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Brokeback Mountain. The film earned many accolades.
Despite being around for so long, there are probably a few things you didn’t know about Jake. Keep reading for 5 interesting facts.
Jake Gyllenhaal has famous family members
The Gyllenhaal family knows a thing or two about fame.
Jake’s father, Stephen, is a film director and poet, while his mother, Naomi, is a screenwriter and director.
Jake’s sister is actress Maggie Gyllenhaal.
Maggie has starred in The Dark Knight and Donnie Darko. In fact, she appeared alongside her brother in Donnie Darko.
Jake once shared, “My sister is probably the reason why I do this, she’s somebody I admire more than anybody in the world and drives me nuts sometimes.”
Jake Gyllenhaal was the inspiration for a Taylor Swift song
Taylor Swift is known for singing about her exes, and one of her exes is Jake.
The two were seen spending time together in October 2010 and spent three months dating before calling it quits.
He was actually the inspiration for the song, We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together.
Fans also think he’s the main subject in All Too Well.
Jake Gyllenhaal does a lot of charity work
Jake is a generous man. He supports the Future Forests program by giving money to have trees planted in a forest in Mozambique.
He also helped to promote climate change awareness after his film The Day After Tomorrow was released, helped with the Stand Up to Cancer TV fundraiser, and donated his time to the American Civil Liberties Union.
Furthermore, Jake is a spokesperson for New Eyes For The Needy, which provides glasses for those who cannot afford them, and he has been donating his unwanted spectacles to the cause since he was a child.
Jake Gyllenhaal was almost Spider-Man
Tobey Maguire injured himself during filming for Seabiscuit and it didn’t look like he’d return for Spider-Man 2.
Jake was chosen as his replacement and even started to begin preparing for the role. During that time, however, Tobey managed to get better and returned for his role.
Jake Gyllenhaal has two dogs named after characters of a famous book
Jake has two dogs named Atticus and Boo. You might recall that these are the names of two main characters in To Kill a Mockingbird. Jake has said that the novel is his favorite of all time.