Jake Gyllenhaal Joined Strange World Because Of The Authentic Personal Story Behind It
Jake Gyllenhaal has enjoyed a long and successful Hollywood career. He's an Oscar-nominated actor who has performed in unforgettable films like "Brokeback Mountain," "Jarhead," "Donnie Darko," and "October Sky" (per IMDb). He's been in the industry long enough and made enough money to take on whatever projects he wants — and that's exactly what he's doing with his latest role in the upcoming Walt Disney Animation Studios family-friendly adventure film "Strange World."
This isn't Gyllenhaal's first time in a voice-acting role. Back in 2005, he narrated a short titled "Between The Two Towers." More recently, he voiced Jim Prescott in the animated adventure "Spirit Untamed," about a young girl named Lucky who moves to a remote town and makes friends with a wild mustang horse named Spirit. Apparently, Gyllenhaal has been bitten by the animated family-friendly film bug, because he's about to do it again. He will be voicing another dad character, but it will be a starring role as opposed to a supporting one. And once you hear the reason why Gyllenhaal was attracted to the part, it might get you more excited about the "Strange World" theatrical release scheduled later this month.
The story made him reflect on his own life experiences
"First and foremost, I always feel like story is what attracts me to a film," Jake Gyllenhaal explained at a presser attended by Looper. "And I could feel from Don [Hall] and Qui [Nguyen] that early on it came from a true place ... it wasn't a story that came from the ether, it came directly from him and his personal experiences. So that made me want to get involved because it felt very personal and then I got to bring my own family and my own experience in a different way." Hall's personal experiences which inspired the script come from his upbringing on his father's farm, and how he fell out of love with the work as he grew older. This had a profound effect on his personal relationship with his dad, and eventually provided fertile ground for "Strange World" to sprout from.
Gyllenhaal voices Searcher Clade, who must go on a fantastic adventure to explore a new world with his famous father, Jaeger (Dennis Quaid); his teenage son, Ethan (Jaboukie Young-White); his wife, Meridian (Gabrielle Union); and Callisto Mal, the leader of the expedition (voiced by Lucy Liu). Searcher is a humble farmer who cultivates pando, a unique flora that the Avalonian people use to power their world. But when the pando starts to die, Searcher must take his family on an expedition that reunites him with his long-lost father and tests the bonds he has with his family. It's directed by Hall ("Big Hero 6") and written by Nguyen, who also co-directed the production.
The immersive and wondrous "Strange World" will be available for audiences to dive into on November 23, when it premieres exclusively in theaters.