Taylor Swift’s ‘All Too Well’ Short Film Easter Eggs: Jake Gyllenhaal References and More

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Taylor Swift’s ‘All Too Well’ Short Film Easter Eggs: Jake Gyllenhaal References and More

Walk down memory lane! Taylor Swift seemingly hinted at her relationship with ex-boyfriend Jake Gyllenhaal in her All Too Well short film. The nearly 15-minute video, written and directed by the 31-year-old Grammy winner, dropped on Friday, November 12, in tandem with the release of Red (Taylor’s Version). Sadie Sink and Dylan O’Brien starred in the project as “Her” and “Him,” though their characters bore a striking similarity to Swift and Gyllenhaal, 40. The short featured the 10-minute version of “All Too Well,” which fans have long assumed was inspired by the Spider-Man: Far From Home actor. Swift continued to play coy about her muse for the song at the Friday premiere for the film. “That’s one of the interesting questions that people ask me all the time about songs, and what I think is important to note is that these songs were mine years ago when they were written. Now they’re ours, now they’re shared,” she told Extra. “I think every person out there might have someone they think of when they hear the song, and that’s what I want.” [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tollGa3S0o8[/embed] Swift noted the impact of the track even before its reemergence on her new album. “This is all about what the fans have turned this song into,” she told The Associated Press on Friday. “It was never a single, never had a video, it never had a visual element to it, but they pretty much created their own imaginary cinematic universe for it, so this is just me following through on what they started and what they told me they wanted.” The singer had nothing but praise for Sink, 19, and O’Brien, 30, too. “I trusted Dylan and Sadie,” she gushed to Extra. “They were so prepared, they were so committed. You couldn’t really keep your eyes off of them on the monitors, so obviously you try to prepare as much as you can before you get there, but on the day, that electricity is either there or it’s not, and the onscreen chemistry between those two — they’re just so talented.” Swift and Gyllenhaal briefly dated in 2010. He brushed off a question about “All Too Well” in 2015 on The Howard Stern Show, replying, “Do I [have a song]? I don’t know.” The exes have both moved on. The songwriter has been dating Joe Alwyn since 2017, while the actor has been linked to Jeanne Cadieu since 2018. Scroll through the gallery below to see all the Easter eggs from the short film: [podcast_block]

Credit: YouTube

The Beanie and Beard Combo

O’Brien sported a beard similar to Gyllenhaal’s throughout the feature, and at one point, he wore a beanie, making him a dead ringer for the Brokeback Mountain star when he and Swift were an item. 

Credit: YouTube

The Age Difference

Sink is 19, while the Teen Wolf alum is 30. By comparison, Swift was 20 to Gyllenhaal’s 29 in 2010. The age gap between the characters is listed as one of the reasons for their split in the 10-minute version of the song. 

Credit: YouTube

The Red Lipstick

The Stranger Things star rocked a red lip during an argument with O’Brien in the short. Swift was allegedly first introduced to the shade of lipstick in 2009, shortly before her relationship with Gyllenhaal.  

Credit: YouTube

The Fall Backdrop

A scene in which O’Brien wrapped his arms around Sink while they walked through the woods is nearly identical to photos that Us Weekly published of Swift and Gyllenhaal showing PDA in New York in November 2010. 

Credit: YouTube

The Final Product

Swift appeared at the end of the video as a grown-up version of “Her,” who was seen reading her book titled All Too Well. Although the character did not translate her heartbreak into a hit song, she did share her story with the world in another creative way.

Credit: YouTube

The Scarf

An older version of “Him” was seen at the end of the video wearing the scarf that “Her” left at his sister’s house. Fans have accused Gyllenhaal of wearing Swift’s scarf — the same one from the November 2010 pics — in the years since their split.

Credit: YouTube

The Older ‘Him’

While reading through the film credits, eagle-eyed Swifties noticed that “Him, Later On” was played by an actor named Jake Lyon, who coincidentally shares the same first name as the Donnie Darko star.

Credit: Elise Ryan/AP/Shutterstock

The Meaning Behind Sink's Character

While making a rare appearance at the Tribeca Festival in June 2022, Swift spoke about the hidden meaning of The Fear Street star’s character. The visual opens with a quote from Pablo Neruda stating, “Love is so short, forgetting is so long,” referencing both Sink’s character and Swift’s inner author. “It’s one of the narrative devices I loved sprinkling through the short film,” she gushed.

Credit: YouTube

The Book

Swift divulged in June 2022 that the title cards shown throughout the 15-minute film are also supposed to be the chapter titles in the future book the main character writes at the end.

Credit: YouTube

The Typewriter

Swift revealed yet another Easter egg at the 2022 Tribeca Film Festival — the red typewriter. “We meet [O’Brien’s character] for the first time; we pan across a red typewriter. Later on, we see her [Sink] typing on that typewriter. We assume he gave it to her: she complimented it and he gave it to her,” the songstress explained. “He’s taken a lot from her in the course of this [song], but he’s also given her something: this dream and hope of being a writer. This experience is what galvanized her life and career.”