Having been linked to a number of superhero roles over the years, including Spider-Man, Batman and Doctor Strange, Jake Gyllenhaal is finally set to take the comic book movie plunge this year by bringing Mysterio to life in Marvel and Sony’s hotly-anticipated sequel Spider-Man: Far From Home.

During an interview with The Los Angeles Times, Gyllenhaal has revealed why he was drawn to the character and what convinced him to make this rare foray into the world of blockbusters.

“He’s a great character,” said Gyllenhaal. “You know it was one of those things that people have asked me for a number of years, ‘Are you going to do / do you want to do a movie like that, or if you were asked to would you?’ And my response has always been, particularly since being at Sundance where so many of the stories are character-driven and that has always been my desire, to find something in that space that seems to match my skill and also what I love and my own honesty. And it just so happened that it does with that part. So, I’m glad that people feel excited about it.”

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There’s a lot of excitement surrounding Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio following that tantalising first glimpse in the Far From Home teaser trailer, and given his track record it would seem pretty safe to assume that we could be in for another memorable Marvel villain turn when the sequel hits cinemas this summer.

Peter Parker (Tom Holland) and his friends go on summer holidays to Europe. However, the friends will hardly be able to rest — Peter will have to agree to help Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) uncover the mystery of creatures that cause natural disasters and destruction throughout the continent.

Spider-Man: Far From Home will be released on July 5th 2019 and features the return of Tom Holland (Spider-Man), Marisa Tomei (Aunt May), Michael Keaton (The Vulture), Zendaya (Michelle), Jacob Batalon (Ned Leeds), Angourie Rice (Betty Brant), Tony Revolori (Flash Thompson), Martin Star (Mr. Harrington), Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury) and Cobie Smulders (Maria Hill), with Jake Gyllenhaal (Nightcrawler) as Mysterio and J.B. Smoove (Uncle Drew), Remy Hii (Crazy Rich Asians) and Numan Acar (Homeland) in undisclosed roles.