Jake Gyllenhaal Sings Celine Dion In ‘SNL’ Opening Monologue

Actor Jake Gyllenhaal was hosting the April 9 episode of “Saturday Night Live” and “Bam Bam” singer Camila Cabello was supposed to be the musical guest.

However, it was the “Donnie Darko” actor that was singing his heart out on stage during his four-minute-long opening monologue.

The “Prisoners” actor took the stage to loud applause on Saturday night. He began his opening monologue by reflecting on how long ago it was since he last took the stage in 2007.

“That was like 400 Marvel movies ago,” he joked. “To give you an idea of what it was like in 2007, in the show I hosted, there was a George W. Bush sketch, there were jokes about the first iPhone, and this is a photo of me from my monologue.”

They then cut to an image of Jake wearing a wig and a glittering gown. Kristen Wiig, Amy Poehler, and Maya Rudolph served as his backup singers. Jake explained, “There I am in full drag, singing a song from Dreamgirls, to promote a movie where I played a gay cowboy.”

He joked, “That was actually probably the least problematic thing in that episode, but looking back, I feel like I was a totally different person.”

The “Brokeback Mountain” star went on to say that he’s developed a reputation for being “this serious, intense method actor” even though he claims that he “wasn’t even that good” at delivering serious performances.

He recalled, “I remember for this movie Nightcrawler, I went to the director and I was like, ‘Get ready for me to lose 48 pounds and win the Oscar.’ And then a week later I was like, ‘How would you like to see an actor lose 36 pounds and win the Golden Globe? Then, I showed up on set and was like, ‘You’re looking at a guy who gained 10 pounds and doesn’t care about awards.'”

Jake explained that he was only “doing that method stuff” because he wanted to be seen as a serious actor, but it made him forget “how to have fun.”

“That’s when I realized something I should have realized a long time ago—acting is a really stupid job,” he continued. “It’s pretend and it’s fun, and it should be filled with joy. Well, I’m finally embracing that joy again, and that’s why I’m back standing on this stage.”

Even though Jake admitted that he didn’t think that the “Saturday Night Live” producers would “come calling” again, he said it’s been so long being on this stage that he might have forgotten how to host. He then said, “it feels like everything is suddenly coming back.”

He then started singing “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now” by Celine Dion. This time, his backup vocalists were Chloe Fineman, Cecily Strong, and Ego Nwodim.

Fans absolutely loved the performance, with one fan writing, “Let’s not forget that Jake was on broadway! He can definitely singgggg.”

“Jake really delivered here. Acting is a really stupid job, truer words were never spoken. The Gay Cowboy had a surprisingly great singing voice,” another commented.

“Nice to see Jake Gyllenhaal channel his inner Celine Dion,” another added.

“He is so honest and real, always growing, not afraid to be looked down on by people who think they've figured it all out,” another wrote. “I respect him so much, and he's also just so darn sweet likable.”

Another fan wrote, “From one Jake to another, it's great to see you back.”