Jake Gyllenhaal: single and 'ok'

Apr 14, 2010, 6:01 GMT

Jake Gyllenhaal thinks being single is "ok".

The 'Brothers' actor - who recently split from his girlfriend Reese Witherspoon - doesn't mind being on his own but still believes it's important to settle down with "the right woman" eventually.

Discussing being on his own, he told America's GQ magazine: "It's... it's okay.

"It goes in either direction. I think it's important for every man to find the right woman and every woman to find the right man."

Jake previously described being with the perfect partner as "the most important" thing a man can do in life.

However, since his break up from Reese, the 29-year-old hunk is unsure what to give precedence to.

He said: "Who am I to say what the most important thing in life is? The best answer I could give to any of those things is that I really don't know, particularly right now in my life."

Jake, the younger brother of actress Maggie Gyllenhaal, had another setback recently when their father Stephen Gyllenhaal and mother Naomi Foner divorced after 29 years.

Jake admits part of their separation has been "relieving" and has taught him to accept that any romance can become "messy".

He said: "It can bring out the truth and honesty in a relationship, and that's greatly relieving to everyone - that people can kind of move and change and grow. And so in some ways, as much pain as there is, there's also a positive outlook on it. And thinking, you know, some relationships last a lifetime, and some relationships don't.

"Like I said, I think it takes a lot of courage for my parents to make the decision that they made, and I trust both of them and their outlook on life. They're wonderful parents to me and my sister Maggie.

"I think any successful marriage, even if it hasn't lasted for a lifetime, will create a sense of an ideal. But I don't have a fantasy. There's not a fantasy. I know it's messy, is what I want to say.

"Family... my family, you know... I love them. Whatever they do, whatever they are... I love them."