ActorJake Gyllenhaalis something of a director himself. In April, Gyllenhaal’s next movie, the action thrillerAmbulance,will be premiering in theaters. Starring Gyllenhaal in a lead role, the fiml is directed by Michael Bay, a filmmaker known for his love of high-octane action. But perhaps Gyllenhaal should be given a co-director credit as well.
Speaking withEsquire, Gyllenhaal’s co-star Yahya Abdul-Mateen II addressed what it was like working onAmbulance. He was in awe at the way Gyllenhaal basically turned the set into “his playground” with just how much he’d get involved with every shot. As Abdul-Mateen explains, it had even got to the point where Gyllenhaal would literally take the camera from Bay to personally shoot some of the scenes for the film. This surprised Abdul-Mateen as he can’t see himself ever crossing that line.
“He made the entire set his playground. Jake loves the camera. There were times when he would take the camera from Mike. And then you look around and Jake is shooting the scene. I had never seen anything like that before. I’m curious about those things, but I would never ask the director if I could shoot a scene.”
For his part, Gyllenhaal says that while Bay “can be brash,” he enjoyed his time working onAmbulance. The big budget film also stars Eiza Gonzalez, Garret Dillahunt, A Martinez, Keir O’Donnell, and Moses Ingram. Chris Fedak (Prodigal Son,Chuck) penned the screenplay based on the original story and screenplay for the 2006 Danish thrillerAmbulancenby Laurit Munch-Petersen and Lars Andreas Pedersen. Bay produced with Bradley J. Fischer (Zodiac,Shutter Island) for New Republic Pictures, James Vanderbilt (Zodiac,Scream2022) and William Sherak (Ready or Not,Scream2022) for Project X, and Ian Bryce (Transformersfranchise,Saving Private Ryan).
Related:These Are Jake Gyllenhaal’s Best Performances, Ranked
Jake Gyllenhaal Heads a Bank Heist in Ambulance
Jake Gyllenhaal is taking on the role of a career criminal inAmbulance, and he seems to have taken to the part well in the trailer. That Michael Bay stamp is definitely present in the sneak peek footage as well given the high levels of action we can expect to see in the film. You can read the synopsis and view the official trailer below.
“Decorated veteran Will Sharp (Abdul-Mateen), desperate for money to cover his wife’s medical bills, asks for help from the one person he knows he shouldn’t—his adoptive brother Danny (Gyllenhaal). A charismatic career criminal, Danny instead offers him a score: the biggest bank heist in Los Angeles history: $32 million. With his wife’s survival on the line, Will can’t say no. But when their getaway goes spectacularly wrong, the desperate brothers hijack an ambulance with a wounded cop clinging to life and ace EMT Cam Thompson (Eiza González,Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw,Baby Driver) onboard. In a high-speed pursuit that never stops, Will and Danny must evade a massive, city-wide law enforcement response, keep their hostages alive, and somehow try not to kill each other, all while executing the most insane escape L.A. has ever seen.”
Ambulanceis set to be released in movie theaters on July 23, 2025.
