I'm going to continue doing what I want to do. And if it means I want to go and make a big movie, if it has something to say, I will want to make it. I don't want to spend my life wasting my time. If it's a big movie, I want to do it. If it's a small movie, I want to do it.

The same year his role as Jack Twist in Brokeback Mountain earned him critical acclaim. Election. In 2002 he starred in another indie film The Good Girl alongside actress Jennifer Aniston.

The same year his role as Jack Twist in Brokeback Mountain earned him critical acclaim. For his performance he won the BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor and was nominated for the Academy Award in the same category. Gyllenhaal then played against type as a frustrated Marine in Jarhead (2005).