Jake Gyllenhaal 'Always Down' For Donnie Darko Sequel

Jake Gyllenhaal said he's in for Richard Kelly's "bigger and more ambitious" Donnie Darko sequel. The Life star, who played the title character in the Kelly-written and directed 2001 cult hit, told the U.K. branch of Yahoo! Movies that he is "always interested" in Kelly's projects and that he would be open to a non-S. Darko sequel.

"He has such an interesting mind," Gyllenhaal said of Kelly. "Obviously that movie means a lot to me and to other people as well. There always have,  throughout the years, been discussions about the possibility of doing different things. I think with anything that is such an original idea as Donnie Darko and the effect that it had on audiences, you're going to constantly be trying to evolve it, or move it, or change it, so I'm always open to that. That's what art is about. It's about ideas and the evolution of them and hopefully discovering something original in the process, and I'm always down."

Kelly revealed a few months ago that he has plans for a sequel, although he says that isn't rushing to get it made. He said that the biggest problem with the project is that his idea is "big and expensive," something which could potentially be solved if a star as big as Gyllenhaal were willing to sign on, promising a big box office return. However, Kelly said he understandably wants to wait until he has a budget that allows him to "do it justice and not to compromise anything."

It's unclear if (or how) Gyllenhaal's character would feature into the sequel, but the film's confusing ending did leave enough things open that there probably is a way for him to make another appearance. Fans would also probably be happier to see a sequel with Gyllenhaal involved, especially with the flop that was the straight-to-DVD  S. Darko (made without Kelly and Gyllenhaal).

Just the fact that the star is open to the idea brings up a whole new set of possibilities for the future of the franchise, though, and that alone should be enough to keep fans happy as they wait for more information on the sequel. Meanwhile, take a look at some of the other box office bombs that became cult classics.