Jake Gyllenhaal

Who is Jake Gyllenhaal?

Jacob Benjamin "Jake" Gyllenhaal is an American actor. The son of director Stephen Gyllenhaal and screenwriter Naomi Foner, Gyllenhaal began acting at the age of ten. Following his first lead role in 1999's October Sky, he starred in the indie cult hit Donnie Darko, in which he played a psychologically troubled teenager alongside his older sister, actress Maggie Gyllenhaal. In 2002, he starred in another indie film, The Good Girl, alongside actress Jennifer Aniston. In 2004, he appeared in the science-fiction film The Day After Tomorrow, portraying a student caught in a cataclysmic global cooling event.

Gyllenhaal then played against type as a frustrated Marine in Jarhead. The same year, his role as Jack Twist in Brokeback Mountain earned him critical acclaim. For his performance he won the BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor and was nominated for the Academy Award in the same category. He has since played the lead roles in many notable films, including Zodiac, Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, Love and Other Drugs, Source Code, End of Watch, and Prisoners.