Maggie Gyllenhaal was born on November 16, 1977, in New York into a Jewish-Swedish family. Acting and the world of film is in her blood—not only is Jake her brother, but their parents are director Stephen Gyllenhaal and Naomi Foner, a writer as well as producer.
Although she was born in New York City, Maggie Gyllenhaal grew up in Los Angeles. Her film debut was Waterland in 1992, starring Jeremy Irons and directed by her father. She starred in five subsequent films all directed by her father: A Dangerous Woman in 1993, Shattered Mind (for TV) in 1996, The Patron Saint of Liars (for TV) and Homegrown in 1998, and Resurrection in 1999 (also for TV). That same year Gyllenhaal graduated from Columbia University, with a B.A. in English, after which she had various supporting roles in several films, including Donnie Darko in 2001, with her brother Jake, and Riding in Cars with Boys that same year, where Drew Barrymore and Steve Zahn starred.
Gyllenhaal had an amazing performance in Secretary, opposite James Spader in 2002. She played a secretary released from a mental institute whose relationship with her employer turned sexual. This was considered her breakthrough role, giving her worldwide celebrity status as well as a Golden Globe nomination. She acted in follow-up roles in films such as 40 Days and 40 Nights, starring Josh Hartnett and Shannyn Sossamon; Adaptation; Casa de los Babys; and, most notably, Mona Lisa Smile, co-starring Julia Roberts, Kirsten Dunst, Julia Stiles, and Dominic West.
Maggie Gyllenhaal has also done some modeling for Reebok as well as Miu Miu, a branch of the Prada fashion house.
Maggie Gyllenhaal is engaged to actor Peter Sarsgaard, with whom she has been in a relationship since 2002. The couple is expecting their first baby in late 2006. Maggie is also very close with her brother Jake, and was best friends with Mona Lisa Smile co-star Kirsten Dunst until Kirsten broke up with Jake. However, the two women still reportedly maintain contact on a friendly level.
Gyllenhaal is also known for her controversial political comments made in an interview with NY1 at the 2005 Tribeca Film Festival, where she alluded to the fact that the U.S. and the U.S. government was partially responsible for the terrorist attack events of September 11, 2001. However, Maggie later noted that she regretted the comments insofar as the timing and place had been wrong.
In 2008 Maggie landed a role in The Dark Knight, as Rachel Dawes, a childhood friend of Bruce Wayne played by Christian Bail who is the Gotham City District Attorney. The role of Rachel was previously given to Katie Holmes in Batman Begins, but due to pressure from her husband Tom Cruise, who is rumoured to have rejected Katie's romantic scenes with Bail, has now dropped out.
