Taylor Swift’s fans had a field day on Instagram after noticing Jake Gyllenhaal, 39, shared a post that seemed to perfectly reference one of his ex’s breakup songs. In 2012, Taylor released a song called “All Too Well” in which the 30-year-old pop star sang, “You used to be a little kid with glasses in a twin sized bed.” Well, eight years later, Jake shared a photo of himself as — you guessed it — a little kid with glasses on.
Jake’s comments section exploded with lyrics from his ex’s iconic breakup song after sharing the throwback photo on Sept. 29. Making this even more of a major coincidence is the fact that “All Too Well” was widely believed among Swifties to be specifically about Jake! “‘You used to be a little kid with glasses in a twin sized bed~’ if you know, you know,” one amused fan wrote, echoing the many other commenters who quoted the exact same line from Taylor’s song. As West Side Story star Rachel Zegler put it, “i’ll be honest mate you set yourself up for this one.”
This appeared to be a total accident, however, since Jake shared his childhood yearbook photo to promote a non-profit organization (New Eyes for the Needy) that donates eyeglasses — not to stir up memories of his ex-girlfriend, presumably. The organization partnered with The Inspire Project for an exciting speaker series! “I’ve worn my glasses ever since I parted my hair meticulously with gel (see above), which is why NEW EYES has always been near and dear to my heart,” the Donnie Darko star wrote in the post’s caption.
He continued, “Since 1932, @neweyes_ has provided eyeglasses to people who needed them most. I’m thrilled that they’ve partnered with @theinspireprojectus to create Project Human: Changing the Way We See the World, a speaker series coming to schools and remote learners this fall. Project Human is designed to spark conversations focusing on unity and equality. It’s an opportunity for students to interact with public figures and do what they do best: Keep ‘em on their toes!”
Even The Inspire Project couldn’t help but join in on the T-Swift jokes, though. The speaker series’s Instagram account shared headlines of Jake’s childhood photo being likened to Taylor’s “All Too Well” song and wrote, “Hey @taylorswift want to help @neweyes_ and @theinspireprojectus get eyeglasses to those in need? You and your Swifties could do wonders for so many! #ProjectHuman.” Well, that would be one way to make the most out of a breakup.
Taylor and Jake enjoyed a brief relationship a decade ago. They were first linked together in the fall of 2010, but had reportedly split by early 2011. Despite this short timeline, Swifties were convinced that many of the songs from Taylor’s album Red were inspired by the split, thanks to clues in tracks like “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” and “State of Grace.” Their relationship drama is a thing of the past, though, since Taylor is now in a happy relationship with Boy Erased star Joe Alwyn!