- Born
- Birth nameMargalit Ruth Gyllenhaal
- Height5′ 9″ (1.75 m)
- Maggie Gyllenhaal was born on November 16, 1977 in New York City, New York as Margalit Ruth Gyllenhaal, the daughter of producer/screenwriter Naomi Foner and director Stephen Gyllenhaal, and the older sister of actor Jake Gyllenhaal. She is of Ashkenazi Jewish (mother) and Swedish, English, and German (father) descent.
She made her film debut in Waterland (1992). She had sporadic roles throughout her teenage years though she took a break to attend Columbia University where she graduated w/ a degree in literature in 1999. In addition, she briefly studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London, which helped w/ her post-graduation transition back into acting.
Soon after graduating, she had supporting roles in Cecil B. Demented (2000) & Donnie Darko (2001). Her breakout role came later when she starred in Secretary (2002), which earned her a Golden Globe nomination. She followed that up w/ supporting roles in 40 Days and 40 Nights (2002), Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002), Adaptation. (2002), & Mona Lisa Smile (2003) among other movies. She received her 2nd Golden Globe nomination for playing a recent prison parolee in Sherrybaby (2006). She followed that up w/ roles in World Trade Center (2006), Stranger Than Fiction (2006) & The Dark Knight (2008).
In 2009, she received great acclaim for her role in Crazy Heart (2009), which earned her 1st Oscar nomination. Since then, she has been seen in Nanny McPhee Returns (2010), Hysteria (2011) & Won't Back Down (2012).- IMDb mini biography by: Anonymous and Bee
- SpousePeter Sarsgaard(May 2, 2009 - present) (2 children)
- Children
- Parents
- RelativesJake Gyllenhaal(Sibling)
- Graduated from Columbia University (1999).
- Older sister of Jake Gyllenhaal.
- Her father's ancestry is Swedish, English, Swiss-German, German, Scottish, and distant Welsh and French. Her ancestor, cavalry Lieutenant Nils Gunnarsson Haal, was enobled, and changed his surname to Gyllenhaal. Maggie's mother is Ashkenazi Jewish (from a family from Latvia and Poland).
- Mother of Ramona Sarsgaard (b. 2006) and Gloria Sarsgaard (b. 2012).
- She has appeared in one film that has been selected for the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically" significant: The Dark Knight (2008).
- I do seem to have a bit of a predilection for movies that say something transgressive.
- It's my responsibility to see what we can move and change about these old-school feminist mantras.
- I find myself more and more interested only in roles which move the world forward.
- You're invited to tons of parties, and you'll wear these shoes and that dress, and it can be enticing, but I think it also sucks you dry. If you do it a little, sure, it's fun, but too much and you start to lose your footing.
- Someone asked me why I didn't do teen movies or action movies, but I'm not interested in them.
- World Trade Center (2006) - $500,000
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