Jake Gyllenhaal was born into a talented family where his father, Stephen, is a director, and his mother, Naomi Foner, is a screenwriter. You also may know his talented sister, Maggie Gyllenhaal, whose best movies include The Dark Knight, Adaptation, The Kindergarten Teacher and more. Knowing how gifted his older sister is, the Road House actor gushed about how she inspired him in his acting career.
You can actually thank Maggie Gyllenhaal for inspiring Jake to have a career in acting like herself. The Brokeback Mountain actor was first interested in being an actor once he saw his older sister in a middle school production of South Pacific. Gyllenhaal told THR after witnessing Maggie’s onstage performance, there was no stopping him from following in his sister’s acting path:
My sister has always been brilliant. What it did was present something to me that I inevitably would always be chasing. She takes a step and does something and I’m like, ‘Whoa, holy shit. All right, I’m going to try this.’
It’s so cute how the 43-year-old actor talks about his older sister by three years still like an adoring little brother. Being born into a gifted family gave Jake Gyllenhaal a leg-up into how the entertainment industry worked, as well as its A-list stars. The famous actor’s first IMDB credit was in 1991 playing Billy Crystal’s young son in City Slickers.
Jake Gyllenhaal is absolutely right that his sister is “brilliant” and talented in her roles. Maggie Gyllenhaal played a kick-ass mom saving the school system in Won’t Back Down, she had a strong presence playing Rachel in The Dark Knight, and brought out character complexity in The Kindergarten Teacher (found with your Netflix subscription) to name a few roles. She’s also an Academy Award nominee and the recipient of three Independent Spirit Awards, three Gotham Awards and a Golden Globe.
Not only has Maggie Gyllenhaal been a leading lady in her own movies, but she’s starred with her brother in three projects. The celebrity siblings have acted alongside each other in two movies directed by their father called A Dangerous Woman and Homegrown. Their third collaboration together ranks as one of the best 2000s movies, with Donnie Darko showing their real-life sibling chemistry.
Even though it’s been over two decades since the Gyllenhaal siblings took part in a project together, they’re about to make your wish come true for next year. Maggie Gyllenhaal may not have an onscreen role in her sci-fi horror film The Bride!, but she’ll be writing and co-producing the project, as well as directing her younger brother! We have no idea what role Jake Gyllenhaal will play, but I have no doubts his acting skills will help turn his sister’s second directorial film into a success.
It’s easy for Jake Gyllenhaal to gush about Maggie considering she’s what inspired him to act in the first place. From childhood to adulthood, He clearly has nothing but strong sibling love for his older sister, as he told THR that he gets emotional just talking about their dynamic. There’s nothing like sibling love to give you all the feels.
Relive the sibling bond of the Gyllenhaal siblings in Donnie Darko with your Peacock subscription. Make sure to also catch The Bride! in theaters on October 3rd, 2025.