Jake on becoming an action star: 'I'd never want to do anything if I looked at it like that'

This holiday weekend Indiana Jones is the film to see. Four years ago, over Memorial Weekend, another blockbuster was released to great public anticipation, largely due, perhaps, to some impressive CGI. Many filmgoers may well have left the theatre with Jake Gyllenhaal on the brain - I know I did.



When The Day After Tomorrow opened in London: 'The premiere was met with a climate change demonstration, plus a one-man protest on the roof of the Odeon cinema by a man dressed in a Superman costume. Writer and director Roland Emmerich, who also made Independence Day and Godzilla, said he would not be making any more disaster movies. "I know this will be my last disaster movie," he said.' Until 2008 and 2012, that is.


A few days earlier in NYC: 'If you sit on the steps of The Museum of Natural History to catch some sun on Tuesday, and notice how spanking clean everything looks, thank the producers of The Day After Tomorrow. At the premiere of the global warming/ice age-themed film, machines spewed soap bubbles all over Central Park West, soaking attendees and baffling passersby. Ruining their shoes on the sopping white towel of a carpet along with stars Jake Gyllenhaal and Dennis Quaid were Kirsten Dunst, Maggie Gyllenhaal and Peter Saarsgard, Al Franken, Ja Rule, Chelsea Clinton and Ian Klaus, and Susan Sarandon, whose daughter Eva Amurri held hands with an unidentified handsome date. We can’t imagine the environmental effects of the dry white gook coating the front of the museum and surrounding trees. We asked a staffer what exactly it was. “Oh, you know. White stuff.”'


After the premiere, there was quite a party: 'After the screening in the museum's Le Frak theater, about 1,000 guests moved to a party in the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life. The party itself was toned down compared to the large-scale arrival event. Restaurant Associates' catering included passed hors d'oeuvres and a buffet with pesto ravioli and a cubed watermelon and goat cheese salad. Pretty decor including white lilies and roses recalled the snowy demise of thousands of Manhattanites in the film—a quiet bit of irony amid the festive party with dance music and martinis.'


You can read an interesting account of what it was like to attend the NYC premiere here.

As for the 'white stuff' that stood in for snow during the filming of TDAT, Jake told Entertainment Weekly, 'Whenever I sneezed, it looked like a mixture of...well, never mind. It was disgusting for months after.' Incidentally, I did enjoy this article's account of the wolf scene: 'On the massive Montreal set, star Gyllenhaal, late of such very non-actiony films as ''Donnie Darko'' and ''The Good Girl,'' gets his cheeks pinked and bangs frosted, then begins an odd chase scene around the freighter, as he flees from...nothing -- the wolves will be added later. After a few takes, Emmerich remarks to his young actor that he's terribly fleet of foot. Gyllenhaal grins beneath frosty eyebrows and replies in perfect movie trailerese, ''Faster's better: Bigger...faster...funnier!''


'The film's cast and crew, for their part, seem pleased (and slightly puzzled) with ''DAT'''s environmental side effect. ''I can't believe a movie has to be the warning,'' Gyllenhaal says. ''I mean, fly into Los Angeles one day and look at the smog.'' ...and Gyllenhaal is remarkably unruffled at the possibility of becoming America's next action star: ''I'd never want to do anything if I looked at it like that -- I'd be like, F -- - it, I'll just stay home,'' he says. ''I'm really tired of people taking big summer movies too seriously, you know? We should all have a little fun.''


Jake and Reese out in LA and Brentwood over the holiday weekend

Because it is a holiday weekend after all, it's not been surprising to have had torrential rain all day, almost up to TDAT proportions - well, not quite. And it turns out it's not only raining in England. There is holiday weather in LA too. With grateful thanks to IHJ, we have new photographs of Jake and Reese out in LA this weekend, not only once but twice! The second set were taken outside Katsuya restaurant in Brentwood. Thanks, Stephanie.







Pictures from IHJ and links.