Wet Dark and Wild is five years old today! Cheers! A celebratory post with thanks

Today is a very special day for me - WDW is five years old - no longer toddling around like a nipper, nappies long forgotten and letters now forming into words longer than 'feed me'! It's been an incredible five years and it's been precious because those years have given me the opportunity to watch Jake Gyllenhaal's career develop, his interests outside film making flourish and his beard and hair levels run amok. These years have also given me some of my closest friends, leading to some of the best times of my life - not least re-enacting Moonlight Mile across Massachusetts and Martha's Vineyard with BBMISwear!

I've been fortunate to see Jake a ridiculously wonderful number of times in five countries and through it all I've had the fun of sharing it all here. And not only my own adventures, it's been great hearing the Jake stories shared by readers here. Hopefully, as Jake's filming - and stage - career step up a gear in 2012, there'll be lots more to come.

The best way to see the highlights of these five years is through the archives, but here is a brief look at just a few of the memorable times...

2007

2007 was a year I'll never forget for it was spent in a whirlwind of film releases. I saw Jake in London, Cannes, Toronto and Rome with a near miss in LA at the Zodiac Premiere that wasn't. I can do no better here than point you in the direction of a post I did for Jake's birthday in 2007. This remains one of my favourite posts from an exceptional year - so good a year in fact that it was the perfect time to start a blog.

2008

2008 was a difficult year for a number of reasons. The loss of Heath Ledger doesn't get easier. Jake spent much of the year filming and being well away from paparazzi cameras while he did it. Jake filmed Brothers in a snowy cold New Mexico before moving to South Carolina in the spring for Nailed. More than one reader here was an extra on the movie and BBMISwear visited the set and gave us the most incredible account following her lunch with Jake and our friend Ted. If you haven't read this account then you really must! Here is a photo of two of my very favourite people... courtesy of BBMISwear.

Another friend Nicole shared her experiences of the filming of Nailed with us too - you can read some of her adventures here and here. Quite incredible. Thanks to Nicole for sharing her pictures. There are little videos on WDW too.

One reader, Lisa, told us all about her experiences on the night time set of Nailed - her daughter was one of the extras. You can read that here and here.

In April, I had an adventure of my own, when An Education filmed in Oxford. This led to the rather unbelievable occasion of bumping in to Peter Sarsgaard on the way home from work. I was very fortunate, thanks to Winterbird, to also attend the premiere in London in 2009.

Also in 2008, friends and I took the trip to London to the premiere of The Dark Night, not least to pay our respects to Heath. A very memorable day and lovely to see Maggie.

As for Jake, for much of the rest of the year barely a peep was heard from him. He had been whisked off to Morocco to film Prince of Persia.

2009

In the spring of 2009 we were granted with our first glimpse of Prince Dastan, giving me the chance to take an archaeological look at its early medieval authenticity - a post that turned out to be one of the most popular in WDW's history.

In the summer, I was off to Boston for my Moonlight Mile journey with BBMISwear. This was quite a trip - seeing BBMISwear trying to launch herself over the post office counter ala Jake was extremely entertaining. Everywhere we went, people were keen to talk about their memories of when Jake and Dustin Hoffman came to town. One of the posts is here, while here we are on our quest for That Bench.

2009 was the year of expectations! We had trailers for Brothers - this film had been put back another year leading to a very miserable WDW for a while. We had glimpses from Prince of Persia and then we had the filming of Love and Other Drugs. Jake now and again emerge from PoP secluded busyness for trips to Europe and much excitement at WonderCon in San Francisco earlier in the year - an event that was attended by a good friend.

As the Noughties drew to a close, I did a recap of some of my favourite photos of the decade. You might want to take a look, if only to see Jake with cute animals.

2010

As 2009 ended and 2010 began, Brothers at last came out after a ridiculously long wait for a film that had been finished long before.

But there were two big highlights for me in 2010. Firstly, the premiere of Prince of Persia in London. An absolutely fantastic event despite the ridiculous setting for it. Again, I was lucky to share the day with good friends and I am very proud that my dear friend Ruby took the best photo of Jake I ever saw from that day. One of the reports here.

The other highlight was in November when I was able to attend the London press conference for Love and Other Drugs thanks to Bleeding Cool! And this meant that finally Love and Other Drugs was out!

2011

2011 was the year of Source Code! After its success at the SXSW festival, it was released around the world to a great reception. I had a great time in Berlin when the film screened there, giving me the opportunity to meet more of Jake's fans while watching Jake from the comfort of a cinema seat with a footstool!

Eureka was one of my friends who was able to see - and meet - Jake elsewhere on the tour - this time in Madrid. She got some brilliant photos!

Jake's hair was a source of fascination in 2011 with Jake at times doing a fine impression of Sasquatch. And then along came End of Watch and all of that changed. Baldy Jake in Uniform emerged.

But without doubt one of the highlights of 2011 - and indeed of the last five years - was Jake's appearance with Brit Bear Grylls on Man vs Wild. This set new standards in the torture of celebrities on television and earned Jake enormous kudos across the media.



And so...

After a quiet period, excitement looms! Jake is about to begin filming An Enemy and will soon be making his debut on the NYC stage. I have no doubt that there will be stories to tell from that! And of course End of Watch will finally reach the big screen. With new management and a new haircut, the future looks rosy! I look forward to following it with all of you. Many thanks to everyone who has shared the last five years with me - Cheers!

Jake 'Lumberjack Chic' Gyllenhaal's 31st birthday and WDW's Florence Interlude

Jake Gyllenhaal is back in NYC. On average he spends 2.375 days in LA for every 16.816 days in NYC, earning enough airmiles that in 2018 he will be able to travel to the International Space Station and test its nosh in person. Meanwhile, there have been a few details on how Jake spent his 31st birthday on Monday. Unlike last year, it wasn't spent scuba diving with walruses in Arctic waters.

This time, Jake burnt off some calories at SoulCycle in Union Square before heading off to the Peter Luger steakhouse in Brooklyn, where he was joined by his family and Love and Other Drugs mate Oliver Platt. Apparently, the steakhouse is better at steak than cakes because Jake's mum Naomi had to bring her own along. Jake blew out the candles at the bar while dressed in 'lumberjack chic' (aka Sasquatch Swank). More details at the New York Post. It would appear Jake's vegan phase may be in hiatus.

Despite the Lumberjack Chic, or maybe because of it, Jake has made InStyle's list of the twenty Most Stylish Men in 2011. You can find him at No 11. Jake fared even higher in the poll of most stylish man in green trousers.

Picture thanks to IHJ.

WDW Florence Interlude

I'm delighted to inform you that the myriad of Florence photos have been sorted, a selection of which can now be put in front of you. I advise that these photos are best viewed while scoffing a pizza and indulging in a drop of something red. But to be forewarned, the first pic is me on the Ponte Vecchio, a mere stone's throw from the largest bunch of ice-creams I've ever seen (second to last photo). The David in the photos is not the original. This copy stands on the site where the original use to be, just by the Uffizi (second photo), before it was moved to the Accademia a short distance away.

Jake Gyllenhaal back at the Medical Center!

Source Code is over for Jake Gyllenhaal, the Prince of Persia Hoopla is about to begin but, always the professional, Jake still has time to put in some hours at The Medical Center. Not only that, he does it with a big grin on his face. Please note how I'm not mentioning the sunglasses.






Thanks to everyone for the birthday wishes as WDW turns three today. It's been and remains enormous fun to spend the time with all of you and share the passion - thanks Jake!

Pictures with thanks from IHJ.

WDW makes two! Brothers and Nailed, however, don't make Cannes...

Wet Dark and Wild is two today, which I'm afraid means that the site has entered into the terrible toddler phase. This means lots of craving for sweet drinks and an irresistible urge to pull things off shelves, spill perfume and spit out sprouts. Before WDW grows out of this phase, I thought I'd celebrate the beginning of a third year (one which should have at least one film in it...) by indulging in a bit - and I'm not saying which bit - of cheeky Jake. Talking of whom, Jake Gyllenhaal wrapped in gold paper and a red bow would be a perfectly acceptable present, if someone could arrange it. A big thank you and cake all round to everyone, including Jake, for making the last two years very busy and a lot of fun. A lot of fun.















Meanwhile, the list for Cannes has been announced and, maybe not surprisingly, Brothers and Nailed are not on the list. The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus will premiere in Cannes, outside of the competition, while in it will be Ang Lee's Taking Woodstock. I wouldn't be surprised, though, if we see Brothers and possibly Nailed at a festival in the Autumn.

Includes pictures from IHJ.

Jake's birthday dinner in Santa Monica (don't mention the boots...)

Jake Gyllenhaal dined out with Reese for his birthday supper at the Il Ristorante di Giorgio Baldi. And, while he and Reese could savour the Tuscan treats, we are given the birthday gift of a good look at Jake's hair, sans-beanie, and it looks to me - and I'm guessing - like hair extensions have now been removed (conversely, it looks like Reese has had some added). But, irrespective of one's feelings regarding Jake's suit (and boots), it is so good to see Jake smiling and laughing on his special day. I wonder if singing waiters brought out a cake with candles...





In this last picture below, I'm wondering whether Jake and Reese forgot to pay - isn't that the chef in hot pursuit? Fortunately, Jake hasn't noticed because he's busy wondering which pap to take out first.


A big thank you to IHJ for the pictures - you can find many more there.

Many happy returns, Jake! It's time to celebrate!

Happy Birthday, Jake! It barely seems a year since your last birthday, the months have flown by so fast, but here it is again. And I hope it brings with it a happy day, complete with friends, pressies, feet up on the sofa/partying (delete as appropriate) and trifle. Please see the last post for the new pictures of Jake in Santa Monica yesterday. But while Jake sits back and unwraps the cookery books, Disney plushie, bottle of something, marzipan treats, new iPod touch, new games for the Wii and some smellies (I'm hoping members of my family are reading this), I thought I'd celebrate Jake's day by taking a look at just a few of the gifts that Jake Gyllenhaal has given us over the years, although there are far too many to list here. So, in no particular order...



Boyfriend magazine: 'I love waking up for work early, especially when it's around 4.30am. I love being on the set of a movie. Some people can't wait to get home, but that's not me. I could sit in my trailer or just hang around a movie set and be one of the last people to leave and be perfectly happy!'



Model Adrienne Curry: 'Jake Gyllenhaal is sexy because not only does he have a fabulous body, but he's also got this childlike innocence to him. You just want to pinch his cheeks and make out with him at the same time.'



'I don't think of myself as good-looking. Not at all. When I was a kid I had these huge glasses. I once went to a fancy dress as a Crest toothpaste tube with these huge glasses stuck on. That is how I see myself most of the time. A Crest toothpaste tube with bad eyesight.'



The LA Press conference for Rendition: Jake: 'What do they say? That the elephant and the donkey and that Emily Dickinson says hope is a thing with feathers and neither an elephant or a donkey has feathers.' Gavin: 'That's way deep.' Jake: 'There you go - see you later... all right... goodbye!'



Filmstew: '“You look like a nice mint chocolate chip cookie,” he suggests in reaction to the mint green blouse and a dark brown skirt I am wearing. “I do?” I ask, blushing and feeling like a 14-year-old. At my advanced age, it really does take a great actor to make me feel that way. “That’s my favorite flavor, so I’ll take that as a compliment,” I offer. ““You should – that’s my favorite flavor too,” he replies. Now I’m totally flustered. As a mature professional, I like to think I can handle any curve ball that’s thrown my way, but Gyllenhaal is looking at me with his adorable blue eyes and incredibly long eyelashes. “Okay, where do we go from here?” I say, stalling for time while I try to recollect my next question. “Let’s just talk about ice cream,” he offers, oozing boyish charm.'


Cosmo 2006: '[On being a secret naturist] Yeah [laughs]. I like to take off my clothes at the end of the day, I like to put them on at the beginning of the day and I prefer to keep them on throughout the day.'


'There was a scene where I was herding 500 sheep on my own, it's not in the movie, down this hill at sunset with, like, a horse. I felt so proud of myself, one, that I was actually riding a horse, two, that I was herding 500 sheep. And there were four or five cameras picking it up, and I remember coming down to the very end and Ang – I was so excited, and Ang said, 'kind of sexy'. That was what he said to me. And I said, 'Let's do it again!' He was like, 'Let's move on'. So my performance, really, I'd describe as 'kind of sexy', just kind of. And then the next scene we moved onto, I was eager to please. And I think he likes to keep that relationship with his actors.'




'I like to compare my relationship with Ang [to] a marriage in some ways. There's a honeymoon period, and then after that – you have the wedding and then you have sex like once or twice a year, but the sex is great, you know what I mean? [laughs] Both Heath and I were incredibly surprised to see Ang at press conferences totally articulate and really very clear about what he was saying about the film. We were both like, 'When we asked it was like...''


Heath on Jake about the filming of Brokeback Mountain: 'I actually ate two or three bars of Cadbury's chocolate each day to get as hyperactive as Jake. I just got fat by the end of the film.'


Yeah, it was like when I was auditioning for Bertolucci, he was like, 'You're going to have to get naked in this movie. If you don't want to get naked then you can't do it.' Roland was like, 'look this is a movie about the environment, and if you don't want to help the environment and get out of your car and recycle, you can't be in this movie.' It was a very similar discussion [laughs]. I know there's no irony in print, either.


On blockbuster movies: 'I love this type of movie. I'm a total pop-culture dork. All the movies I've done reflect where I am and this is one of those times I just wanted to have fun. I've done the sad, introverted characters so I was glad of the change.'


Michelle Williams: 'Honest to God, I did not see the two boys I know. I did not see Jake and I did not see Heath when I saw that scene - and I know both of them well (one of them better than the other). So often, when you're doing a shot like that, the other actors aren't there but I was lucky enough. After the scene I just asked them to embrace, to just hold each other. It was a sweet moment.'



'You grow up in a city and there’s everything around you all the time, and I don’t think you realise how lonely you are until you get out of there. You know, what I think about Brokeback Mountain is that the reason why these two men fall in love is out of loneliness. Like there’s just nothing more in their lives when they meet and it’s the best thing that happens to them when they meet there. And the same thing, I think, in a weird way, Tony Swofford has to go to that place of almost utter, desperate, horrible loneliness in order to become, in a way, the writer that he became. I don’t know, I just feel like you got to go to those places and somehow, unconsciously, I was there all of a sudden. I don’t know really why I picked those films.'


'[And have you emerged a different person?] Yes, definitely. To me, it’s hard to be sitting here and dealing with the result, you know, and talking about the result of them. For a long time I was very interested in the result, what people thought and all these things, but to me these experiences were not that at all. To me I’m a different person because of the process of both of these films, not because of the result of them. That, to me, is really important to distinguish, regardless of people’s judgements.'



'[Oscar buzz] There's a lot of talk about things like that when you're working with a director like Ang Lee, or when you're working with a director like Sam Mendes, because they are inevitably two Oscar-winning directors. When you're working with Jamie Foxx, when you're working with Chris Cooper...it's inevitable that people attach those things to those projects. But for me, I feel like all that I have really, as an actor, is the process...Both Sam and Ang have changed my life regardless of the result of any of these films. The processes of both movies have changed my life, and that's what I take away with me. And everything else is just fun. [laughs] And is a laugh, sometimes. And feeds the ego.'


Cosmo: 'Well, there is part of me that's Donnie Darko, I'm not gonna deny that, and there's a part of me that looks at the world now in a more mature way than when I made the movie. I was going through a tough time growing up, dealing with it and figuring it out, and that was why I related so much to Donnie. It's not like the growing up has stopped, but I do feel I'm different. There's a whole other part of me that's other things. I just haven't shown them yet.'




UK MTV Zodiac special: David Fincher: 'Jennifer Aniston cast this movie because she was saying 'Oh my God! Jake! You'll love him. he's fantastic! He's so charming, he's so great!' Jake: 'She can be one hell of an influence.' David: 'I had seen Jake in Donnie Darko and I'd seen Jake in The Good Girl and I liked that he could be part of something that was dark without having to play dark.'


'[It weighed heavily on Jake that David wouldn't do Zodiac without him.] 'Ach! It's so hard, it's so hard. I've got to tell you, I mean the hardest thing... I mean one day when we have more time, I'm going to go into it with you because to be... it's just tough, really tough. No. It's a nice story when you think about it now because that's the way David is. David gets something in his mind that he wants. It's wonderful when you're the actor that he wants and a lot of people at the time may have not had a lot of faith in you and he'll fight for you. He wanted me. He wouldn't make the movie without me. It was essential. That is what you want from a filmmaker.'



Happy Birthday, Jake! Includes pictures from IHJ.