Jake Gyllenhaal 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" at the Garrick Theatre in 2002. 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". In 2005, Gyllenhaal starred in the critically praised films "Proof", "Jarhead", and "Brokeback Mountain".
Stephen Gyllenhaal Stephen Gyllenhaal Stephen Roark Gyllenhaal (; born October 4, 1949) is an American film director and poet. He is the father of actors Jake Gyllenhaal and Maggie Gyllenhaal. Gyllenhaal was born in Cleveland, Ohio, to Virginia Lowrie (née Childs) and Hugh Anders Gyllenhaal. He is of Swedish and English descent; through his father, he is a member of the Gyllenhaal family, and a descendant of the cavalry officer Nils Gunnesson Haal, who was ennobled in 1652 when Queen Christina of Sweden conferred upon him the crest and family name, "Gyllenhaal." Stephen grew up in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, a suburb of