Peter Sarsgaard on Balancing Family and Acting Career

Peter Sarsgaard and Maggie Gyllenhaal attend The Fourth Annual Academy Museum Gala at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles, Calif., on Oct. 19, 2024. Amy Sussman/Getty Images

Actor Peter Sarsgaard is choosing to spend less time working to be present with his family instead.

During an interview with People, the 53-year-old shared that he and his wife, Maggie Gyllenhaal, “take turns in terms of our work” to reduce their pursuit of acting roles.

“I think at one point I used to think that I would work more if I could. But I think that’s wrong,” he said.

“When I say yes to do something, it’s some type of sacrifice for me ... I can’t work constantly. I have a whole other life. I have a family.”

Sarsgaard and Gyllenhaal married in 2009. They have two daughters together—Ramona, 18, and Gloria Ray, 13.

Sarsgaard’s most recent project is a starring role in the recently released drama film “September 5,” while Gyllenhaal is working on a new film named “The Bride,” which is based on the novel “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley. The film also features lead actors Christian Bale and Jessie Buckley.

Prioritizing Family

During an interview with The Guardian in December, Sarsgaard shared that while Gyllenhaal was directing “The Lost Daughter,” he took care of their children to allow his wife to focus on the project.

“It’s my number one priority anyway,” he said. “Not because of a sense I should do it, but because I want to do it.”

“We’ve both made sacrifices in our careers to have the type of family environment we want to have. And it’s rare that either one of us sacrifices something that we really should do,” he later added. “I’m going to say it’s happened once or twice, in just really extenuating circumstances.”

Born on March 7, 1971, in St. Clair County, Illinois, Peter Sarsgaard was raised Catholic, graduating from a Jesuit boys school in Connecticut, where he became interested in film.

Starting with minor guest roles on New York-based dramas such as “Law and Order” and “New York Undercover,” Sarsgaard made his film debut in 1995’s “Dead Man Walking” as a teenager murdered by a convict played by fellow actor Sean Penn.

Sarsgaard got his first breakthrough with the 1995 biographical film “Boys Don’t Cry,” where he played killer John Lotter. He then got his first lead role in 2001’s “The Center of the World,” followed by 2002’s “K-19: The Widowmaker,” “Empire,” and “The Salton Sea.” He got another breakthrough when he played journalist Charles Lane in “Shattered Glass,” for which he earned his first Golden Globe nomination.

Some of Sarsgaard’s recent projects include 2021’s “The Lost Daughter,” which was directed by Gyllenhaal, 2022’s “The Batman,” and 2023’s “Memory,” where he played a man with dementia. His most recent project is “September 5,” a historical film that recounts the 1972 Munich massacre at the Summer Olympic Games.