Jake Gyllenhaal pulls off swoon-worthy quarantine serenade

Jake Gyllenhaal, Hollywood actor and Swedish nobleman, has a serious set of singing pipes. He unleashed them onto the world late last month when he joined a slew of other stars in a virtual Stephen Sondheim celebration. In honour of the composer’s milestone birthday, Gyllenhaal belted out an a cappella track from Sunday in the Park with George and the world stood still. And, just a few short/seemingly endless days ago, the Brokeback Mountain and Nightcrawler star shared a video to Instagram featuring himself singing a song that had been written, composed and recorded in just 24 hours, fittingly calling the tune “a love song in the age of quarantine.”This latest musical endeavour is part of the 24 Hour Plays project, an arts organization that “brings together creative communities to produce plays and musicals that are written, rehearsed, and performed in 24 hours.” Gyllenhaal’s song was a variation on that same theme. The actor paired with playwright David Lindsay-Abaire and composer Jeanine Tesori to produce the tune, to which Gyllenhaal added his Disney musical-worthy singing skills. (For real: someone had better get this man a spot in Frozen 3.) 

 

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A love song in the age of quarantine, this is ‘ACROSS THE WAY’ from the brilliant minds of @jeaninetesori and @lindsayabaire. Written and recorded in 24 hours for the @24hourplays, it was an honor to collaborate with these two from across the way! If you can, please donate to @24hourplays Special thanks to: @middle_pedal @mcyellowsound

A post shared by Jake Gyllenhaal (@jakegyllenhaal) on May 8, 2020 at 1:08pm PDT

The song, about a pair of locked-down New Yorkers who have a real connection but a government-mandated stay-at-home order keeping them apart, is the kind of material entire Broadway (remember Broadway?) productions are built around. Titled “Across The Way” it’s part of a series of performances—most of which are theatrical monologues—all produced under the same strict 24-hour limit and starring other singing celebrs like Rita Wilson, Patrick Wilson, Minnie Driver and Sienna Miller.[video_embed id='1859129']RELATED: Jake Gyllenhaal has always wanted to be a ‘bad-ass stunt guy'[/video_embed]Things really start to sizzle around the three-minute mark, where Gyllenhaal goes into full Freddie Mercury-falsetto mode in a valiant effort to profess his obsessive love for New York Governor, Andrew Cuomo. We hope the governor is flattered—we would be.This virtual performance is the latest in Gyllenhaal's (inadvertent?) campaign to become the Internet's Quarantine Boyfriend, if his sourdough skills and shirtless handstands didn't already have you hooked.[video_embed id='1956777']BEFORE YOU GO: Kelly Clarkson tells us all about her secret talent[/video_embed]