Jake Gyllenhaal Reveals the Challenges of Filming Love Scenes with Jennifer Aniston

During an interview on The Howard Stern Show, actor Jake Gyllenhaal opened up about his experience working alongside Jennifer Aniston in the 2002 film The Good Girl.

When asked by Stern if it was difficult to film love scenes with Aniston, Gyllenhaal admitted that it was indeed “torture” because he had developed a crush on her.

Gyllenhaal chuckled as he confirmed, “Oh yeah, it was torture, yes it was.

But it was also not torture.

I mean, come on, it was like a mix of both.”

He further explained that love scenes can be awkward due to the presence of a large crew watching.

The actor described the process as mechanical and likened it to choreographing a fight scene for the camera.

Reflecting on their time filming together nearly two decades ago, Gyllenhaal shared that one thing that stood out to him was the use of a pillow during their intimate scenes.

He admitted, “The pillow technique was used.

That was just preemptive and used generally always when actually in a horizontal place in that movie.”

According to Gyllenhaal, it was actually Aniston's suggestion to use the pillow.

He expressed gratitude for her thoughtfulness, saying, “I think that was actually a Jennifer suggestion, she was very kind to suggest it before we began.

She was like, ‘I'm putting a pillow here.'”

In a previous interview with PEOPLE in April 2016, Gyllenhaal jokingly referred to his experience working with Aniston as “rough.”

He confessed to having a crush on her for years and admitted that it wasn't an easy task to work alongside her when he was only 22 years old.

Despite the challenges, he described the experience as lovely and emphasized that it wasn't Aniston's role in Friends that drew him to her, but rather her personality and the movies she had been a part of.

Gyllenhaal concluded by acknowledging Aniston's impact on him, stating, “Not so much Friends, but kind of her personality from afar, and movies she was in.

And some of Friends – I'm not a huge Friends fan – but who she is.”

It seems that Gyllenhaal's admiration for Aniston made filming their love scenes a mix of excitement and discomfort.

The pillow technique provided some comfort during those intimate moments, as they navigated the challenges of portraying chemistry on screen while being mindful of the crew's presence.