Back to All News
Jake Gyllenhaal and Antoine Fuqua Open Up About The Guilty's' Many Unique Challenges
Netflix Staff
Entertainment
29 September 2021
GlobalUnited States
Six years after the boxing drama Southpaw, actor Jake Gyllenhaal and director Antoine Fuqua reunite for the new Netflix thriller The Guilty. Based on the 2018 Danish film of the same name, Gyllenhaal stars as a troubled police detective who is demoted to 911 operator duty and scrambles to save a distressed caller during a harrowing day of revelations - and reckonings. Because of the unique premise - with many dramatic scenes taking place with Gyllenhaal on the phone - the entire shoot only required 11 days and three on-screen cast members, including Gyllenhaal, who also produced the film with Fuqua. Ahead of The Guilty's Oct. 1 Netflix release, the duo discussed what brought them to the project, their behind-the-scenes research and the film's many unique challenges.
How did each of you get involved with the film?
ANTOINE FUQUA: I got a phone call from my friend Jake, and he said he had a script that he thought I was perfect for. I read it that night and called him, I think, the next day and said, Im in. Obviously, to work with Jake again was a big plus. I love the guy, and the subject matter was as perfect as he said it would be for me.
JAKE GYLLENHAAL: Antoine and I share something really special, sort of indescribable. We have an instinct together when theres a piece of material. There was something I felt I understood about The Guilty, something underneath that I always related to very deeply, it thrilled me and inspired me. And so, it was a no-brainer and also no surprise that Antoine committed as quickly as I did. He was the only other person besides me, who, as soon as he read the story, was like, Im in. Thats how I felt too. And that bond that we have, thats hard to put into words, comes through in the film. Its so wonderful being able to work with someone more than once and know that you trust them already, to know that theyll go as far as youll go and vice versa.
What kind of research did you do for the film?
FUQUA: Myself and Jake both have friends in this world that weve known for a long time, and what I needed to do was go to a 911 call center, so I went to one in West Valley and the captain there Dave Storaker he helped us a lot. He walked us through the call center and introduced us to some of the people, and gave us some insights on what they go through daily on a personal level, and a lot of technical things, obviously, we needed to learn about the headsets and how it works.
What was most striking was just the human connection when you go to a place like that and you see people that look like your mom, or your brother, or your cousin - and youre not just a voice on the phone- who had to live with someone elses trauma every day, listen to people calling obviously, on the worst day of their lives. And the people that they call at the 911 center take on that stress as well.
What were some of the unique challenges that you had to work through in the film from working in one location, working with the actors that Jake speaks to on the phone?
FUQUA: It is a film about sound, about listening, about what you hear, and what the reality is. Capturing that is a whole other story, practically, because at that time we were filming, it was during the height of COVID, so we couldnt have actors going to a regular stage and record, so we had to come up with a system with our sound guy on how to get these special boxes to actors who were all over the world, and then get their recording, but then do it live with Jake while hes in a room performing, without any glitches.
Well, that didnt happen at all. I think he had about five or six different voices in his ear at the same time because of the technical issues. We had to work off of the Zoom system as well. We figured it out eventually. I think Jake had probably performed each scene like it was a play, constantly, over and over and over, because the calls were coming back-to-back. Theres not a lot of cuts in between each call, so we had to almost do the entire script, in certain sections, as a play, with voices in his ear. It was challenging but it was amazing because of what happens naturally: it makes you lean in more because it was so difficult to hear. We use a lot of the dialogue from the first Zoom calls, cause the performances are just so raw, and, and a lot of Jakes performance was so intense.
GYLLENHAAL: When I first sent the script to Antoine, what I said was, Lets shoot this movie in five days. That really got us going excited, the idea that we could shoot the movie in a very short period of time, the pressure would be on, just like its on Joe Baylors character. And if theres anything I know about Antoine, he loves that pressure, and we both thrive in that space.
So, we set this goal for ourselves, and slowly, that 5 days turned into 11 days. So we shot the movie and scheduled it for 11 days, and we designed this idea that we break it up into five sections and each one would be around 15 to 20 pages, and wed shoot one of those sections every day. So, I would prepare Section 1, 2, 3, 4, and I would call Antoine as a secret and Id say, I have 1 to 4 memorized. He said, Dont tell anybody. We still have 11 days. Maybe we can shoot it in 9.
The Guilty is available to stream Oct. 1 on Netflix.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
18/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/03/2026
SMPTE , the home of media professionals, technologists, and engineers, today unveiled its educational presentations for the 2026 NAB Show. This year SMPTE will ...
18/03/2026
Maxon, maker of powerful, approachable software solutions for creators working in 2D and 3D design, motion graphics, visual effects, gaming, and more, today ann...
18/03/2026
Digital Alert Systems
Preview
2026 NAB Show
April 19 - 22
Booth C3452
At the 2026 NAB Show, Digital Alert Systems will showcase Version 6.0 of its DASDEC ...
18/03/2026
Setplex today announced that it will showcase its complete, fully integrated Zapflex platform for the first time at the 2026 NAB Show, introducing powerful new ...
18/03/2026
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT RELATES TO THE DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION THAT QUALIFIED OR MAY HAVE QUALIFIED AS INSIDE INFORMATION WITHIN THE MEANING OF ARTICLE 7(1) OF THE ...
18/03/2026
COW Jobs: Seeking DP for Low Budget Dramedy - Chicago
Brie Clayton March 17, 2026
0 Comments
Seeking Director of Photography for Low Budget Dramedy Fe...
18/03/2026
COW Jobs: Seeking Gaffer for Low Budget Dramedy - Chicago
Brie Clayton March 17, 2026
0 Comments
Seeking Gaffer for Low Budget Dramedy Feature Film- I...
18/03/2026
COW Jobs: Seeking Location, Sound for Low Budget Dramedy - Chicago
Brie Clayton March 17, 2026
0 Comments
Seeking Location/Sound for Low Budget Dramed...
18/03/2026
COW Jobs: Seeking Child Wrangler for Low Budget Film - Chicago
Brie Clayton March 17, 2026
0 Comments
Seeking Child Wrangler for Low Budget Dramedy Fe...
18/03/2026
Calrec Redefines Broadcast Workflows at NAB 2026 with its Most Powerful Hardware...
18/03/2026
Oscar Nominated Two People Exchanging Saliva Posted with DaVinci Resolve Studio
Brie Clayton March 17, 2026
0 Comments
DaVinci Resolve Studio handle...
18/03/2026
Boston Conservatory Presents Celebrated Musical Satire Urinetown Performances for this Center Stage production will take place at Boston Conservatory Theater ...
18/03/2026
Charlie Puth Joins Switched On Pop at Berklee NYC The Berklee alum spoke with host and Berklee NYC professor Charlie Harding for a live taping, answering audi...
17/03/2026
NASA+'s Rebecca Sirmons and Brittany Brown offer unique look at live streami...
17/03/2026
The transition to IP has fundamentally reshaped professional media infrastructures. Video, audio, and increasingly metadata now circulate as independent, precis...
17/03/2026
Live sports streaming can push every element in your video delivery chain to its limit, exposing every potential weakness in seconds. When the Super Bowl, the O...
17/03/2026
Texas Athletics sought to modernize its media production, enhance fan experience...
17/03/2026
Ikegami USA will demonstrate the latest additions to its wide range of broadcast...
17/03/2026
TNA Wrestling and iHeartMedia announces a new multi-platform collaboration that will integrate iHeartMedia across TNA's premium live events, weekly televisi...
17/03/2026
The goal was to transform Hard Rock Stadium into a global leader in sports and e...
17/03/2026
Spectrum has announced the launch of its new Multiview feature in the Spectrum TV App, giving customers the ability to watch up to four NCAA men's or women&...
17/03/2026
Genius Sports deal also covers data technology, AI, fan engagement, and performance analysis....
17/03/2026
Net Insight is supporting the rollout of a new state-wide centralized operation with Rede Massa, which is an SBT affiliate, the Brazilian regional television ne...
17/03/2026
Featuring audio from practice sessions, qualifying races, and Grand Prix races, the film represents Apple's sports-media ambitions
At Sunday night's Ac...
17/03/2026
Live broadcast has always been one of the most demanding environments in media a...
17/03/2026
DirecTV is introducing several new viewing features, including a multi-screen March Madness Mix channel and an updated Sports Central mobile app hub, ahead of...
17/03/2026
Deltatre has announced a multi-year partnership with ATP Media, the media arm of the ATP Tour, covering broadcast graphics, data, and production across the 2026...
17/03/2026
The Detroit Pistons have announced a third consecutive season partnering with Sc...
17/03/2026
Fresh Finds Africa spotlights emerging artists and movements across the continent and its global diaspora, with listeners tuning in to discover new Afro-forward...
17/03/2026
Last month, more than 60,000 fans piled into Bangkok's Rajamangala National ...
17/03/2026
Vintage-inspired channel strip joins line-up
Black Rooster Audio's latest plug-in provides an all-in-one mixing tool inspired by classic analogue consol...
17/03/2026
Level and EQ voice, reverb and noise independently
The latest plug-in to join Accentize's collection is said to take a new approach to dialogue processi...
17/03/2026
UHF radio mic & IEM bandwidth at risk
Once again, the UHF bandwidth that is currently allocated to RF audio gear is at risk of being reassigned to high-spee...
17/03/2026
Last Friday, the first Plant Fire Department Training Week in Bavaria successf...
17/03/2026
New campaign from NAATI and SBS CulturalConnnect highlights how we all deserve ...
17/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
17/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
17/03/2026
3D streaming infrastructure provider Miris today announced the launch of a public beta for its new 3D asset streaming platform. Miris is building the infrastruc...
Back to All News
