Jake Gyllenhaal's first major TV role will be an Apple TV Plus series from Big Little Lies creator and JJ Abrams

Jake Gyllenhaal in The Guilty
(Image credit: Netflix)

Jake Gyllenhaal is set to take on his first major TV role with Presumed Innocent, a new Apple TV Plus series from Big Little Lies creator David E. Kelley. 

The limited series will be inspired by the 1987 novel of the same name, which was adapted into a movie starring Harrison Ford in 1990. It follows Rusty Sabich, the role played by Ford and now Gyllenhaal, a prosecutor suspected of murdering a close colleague. The case rocks the Chicago Prosecuting Attorneys’ office and Rusty must attempt to hold his family and marriage together as all evidence starts to point to him. 

Kelley is on board as showrunner, as well as writing and executive producing, while JJ Abrams is producing with his Bad Robot production company. Kelley is the creator of a number of TV shows, including Ally McBeal, Big Little Lies, Netflix's Anatomy of a Scandal, and the upcoming HBO Max series Love and Death. 

Gyllenhaal's last role was in the Disney animated movie Strange World, and he was also recently seen in the Michael Bay actioner Ambulance and Netflix thriller The Guilty. His other upcoming projects include The Covenant, directed by Guy Ritchie, and Doug Liman's Road House remake. 

This will be his first major small-screen role other than appearances in comedy specials and sketch shows like Saturday Night Live, Inside Amy Schumer, and John Mulaney & the Sack Lunch Bunch. 

While we wait for Presumed Innocent to arrive on Apple TV Plus, fill out your watch list with our picks of the other best new TV shows coming our way in 2022 and beyond.

Entertainment Writer

I’m an Entertainment Writer here at 12DOVE, covering everything film and TV-related across the Total Film and SFX sections. I help bring you all the latest news and also the occasional feature too. I’ve previously written for publications like HuffPost and i-D after getting my NCTJ Diploma in Multimedia Journalism.