Conversations with Jake Gyllenhaal (2016)

A career retrospective with Jake Gyllenhaal on December 1, 2016.

Moderated by Jenelle Riley, Variety.

Jake Gyllenhaal, an Academy Award nominee, has established himself as one of the finest actors of his generation. With his new production company Nine Stories, he is also on his way to becoming a filmmaker of note – sourcing material, developing it from the ground up, collaborating with bold storytellers, and shepherding the projects through release.

In 2014, he starred in Dan Gilroy’s Nightcrawler, which he also produced. For his performance as Louis Bloom, Mr. Gyllenhaal received BAFTA, Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild, Critics’ Choice, and Spirit Award nominations, as well as Best Actor citations from numerous critics’ groups.

He received an Academy Award nomination, and won a BAFTA Award, for his performance as Jack Twist in Ang Lee’s classic Brokeback Mountain, also for Focus Features.

Working with some of the world’s finest filmmakers on both independent and studio features, Mr. Gyllenhaal has also starred in David Ayer’s End of Watch, which he executive-produced; Dennis Villeneuve’s highly acclaimed Prisoners and Enemy, playing a dual role in the latter; Richard Kelly’s cult hit Donnie Darko; Antoine Fuqua’s Southpaw; Jean-Marc Vallee’s Demolition; Baltasar Kormákur’s Everest; Jim Sheridan’s Brothers; Duncan Jones’ Source Code; David Fincher’s Zodiac; Sam Mendes’ Jarhead; John Madden’s Proof; Miguel Arteta’s The Good Girl; Brad Silberling’s Moonlight Mile; Nicole Holofcener’s Lovely & Amazing; Joe Johnston’s October Sky; and Ed Zwick’s Love & Other Drugs, for which he received a Golden Globe Award nomination.

In 2014, Mr. Gyllenhaal made his Broadway debut in Nick Payne’s Constellations and his musical theatre debut in the Encores! production of Little Shop of Horrors. The actor made his New York stage debut in 2012 starring in If There Is I Haven’t Found It Yet, for the Roundabout Theatre Company, which earned him nominations from the Drama League and the Lucille Lortel Awards. The latter marked his first stage work since 2002, when he starred on London’s West End in Kenneth Lonergan’s revival ofThis is Our Youth, for which he won an Evening Standard Theater Award for Outstanding Newcomer.

He recently formed Nine Stories, a production company acquiring and developing new material. The company is in development on a number of titles, including Denis Villeneuve’s The Son, which is based on Jo Nesbo’s critically acclaimed novel of the same name; a scripted limited series for A&E centered on cults throughout history; and the cartel drama The Man Who Made It Snow, to be directed by Antoine Fuqua. Additional projects in development include Theater of War, based on an episode of “This American Life,” which will be directed by Alex Timbers; and Ubisoft’s film adaptation of the Tom Clancy video game “The Division,” in which Mr. Gyllenhaal will also star.

Through Nine Stories, he has produced Stronger, inspired by a true story and based on The New York Times bestseller of the same name. The movie, directed by David Gordon Green and to be released in 2017, is the deeply personal account of the heroic journey of Boston Marathon survivor Jeff Bauman (whom Mr. Gyllenhaal portrays).

He currently stars in Focus Feature’s Nocturnal Animals.