Jake Gyllenhaal Recalled Going Up Against Heath Ledger In Final Auditions For “Moulin Rouge” And Said They Were Both “Disappointed” When Ewan McGregor Got The Part
“It’s where I first heard of Heath, and they would shuffle us in and out of rooms.”
In a new interview with Howard Stern, Jake pulled back the curtain on his career and reflected on some of the biggest jobs he closely missed out on — starting with Christopher Nolan’s Batman Beginsin 2005.
Looking back, Jake said he was aware that he was competing with Christian Bale, who was eventually cast as Batman, and recalled making it to a final round of auditions where he got to wear the famous Batsuit.
If Jake had gotten the role, he’d have eventually shared the screen with Heath, who famously played the Joker opposite Christian in The Dark Knight. And though this never came to be, Heath and Jake’s careers fortunately crossed paths in a number of other ways before the actor’s tragic death.
Talking to Howard, Jake recalled first hearing about Heath when they went up against one another for Baz Luhrmann’s 2001 musical movie, Moulin Rouge.
As we now know, Ewan eventually bagged the role, and Jake revealed that both he and Heath were “disappointed” by the loss at the time.
Reflecting on it now, Jake acknowledged that rejection is all a part of the process, saying: “In the end… you learn to go, ‘There’s another one.’ Right? I can try and go in and audition for another one. I'll get something else… You keep that attitude.”
Of course, it was only a few years later in 2005 that Heath and Jake shared the screen in Brokeback Moutain, which earned them both Oscar nominations and is considered one of the best movies of the 2000s.
Just like Moulin Rouge and Batman Begins, the casting process for Brokeback Mountain was seriously competitive, with actors like Josh Hartnett and Joaquin Phoenix also in the running to star.
But, just as Jake said, when you keep going, the right opportunities will find you.
