Jake Gyllenhaal was born on December 19th, 1980 as the son of director Stephen Gyllenhaal and producer / screenwriter Naomi Foner. His father grew up with the Swedenborgian faith and is a member of the Swedish noble family Gyllenhaal.
His mother comes from a Jewish-American family in New York. She’s the sister of Eric Foner, a famous historian at Columbia University. Gyllenhaal grew up with the Jewish faith. Later, he had his Bar Mitzvah in a homeless center because his parents wanted to instill gratitude for his privileged lifestyle.
His sister Maggie Gyllenhaal is also an actress, with Jake she appeared in films such as ”A Dangerous Woman” and ”Donnie Darko”.