http://www.marieclaire.com/celebrity-lifestyle/celebrities/interviews/maggie-gyllenhaal-interview-dark-knightMega Maggie Gyllenhaal Once the queen of quirky indie movies, The Dark Knight star Maggie Gyllenhaal braces for the highs — and surprising lows — of blockbuster-size fame.
By Meryl Gordon(....)
"
Maggie's got a lot of sass," says
Aaron Eckhart, who stars as the disfigured vigilante Two-Face in
The Dark Knight. He starts to laugh as he adds, "She has very strong opinions on acting and things outside moviemaking. She's not afraid to speak her mind."
On this sunny afternoon at the cozy restaurant Savoy, a Soho mainstay, Gyllenhaal, who has come directly from her 8-year-old niece's dance recital, is dressed — full fashion alert — for comfort, in sandals, blue jeans, a gray jersey wrap top, a Miu Miu red cardigan sweater, an antique diamond engagement ring, and a gold necklace with her 22-month-old daughter Ramona's name engraved on a tiny angel pendant. Tall and slender, she has a throaty voice and a lopsided smile. It has become de rigueur for anorectic actresses to consume big meals when dining with reporters to prove they do eat, but Gyllenhaal does not appear to be acting when she digs into a plate of pork sausage. (....)
The one name missing from that list is
Heath Ledger, who plays the Joker in the movie and died of an accidental prescription-drug overdose in January, after the movie wrapped. "My heart really broke when he died," says Gyllenhaal, her winsome face darkening. "I think seeing the movie will be painful. I saw this new trailer, which I loved, but Heath was all over it, and it was very sad to see it. Hard to watch."
"What he does is extraordinarily intense," says Christopher Nolan, "and what works is seeing Maggie reacting to it, which heightens the drama." Is Maggie's character in danger from him? "Oh yeah," Nolan replies. "Everyone is in danger from him."
Gyllenhaal and Sarsgaard were Brooklyn neighbors of Ledger and his girlfriend Michelle Williams (the couple starred with Jake in Brokeback Mountain). "We live pretty close to them," says Gyllenhaal, recalling the media maelstrom in the wake of Ledger's death and how bad she felt for Williams. "It was disgusting. I had journalists call me on my cell phone. There were these two shy girls sent from some rag magazine to camp in front of my house. I came home with Ramona and I was so shocked and angry." But then she adds with a hint of sympathy, "These poor girls, it wasn't their fault. They were out of their element."
(and etc.)