Taylor Swift Fans Are Flooding Jake Gyllenhaal's Instagram Comments

• Taylor Swift fans have taken over Jake Gyllenhaal's Instagram comments, almost 10 years after they dated.
• Gyllenhaal posted a childhood photo of himself wearing glasses, in support of the charity New Eyes.
• Swifties seized the opportunity to quote her song "All Too Well," widely believed to be about Gyllenhaal.

Here's the thing about celebrity relationships: No matter how short-lived they may be, or how thoroughly all parties have moved on, in the eyes of the public they are eternal. Which explains the current state of Jake Gyllenhaal's Instagram comments, courtesy of Taylor Swift's fanbase. Gyllenhaal and Swift reportedly dated from around October 2010 to January 2011, you may recall.

Allow me to explain: Earlier this week, Gyllenhaal shared a childhood photo of himself wearing glasses in support of New Eyes for the Needy, a non-profit which provides glasses to those in financial need. Observe:

Here's the thing: There's a track on Swift's 2012 album Red (which is her all-time best album, and I will not be persuaded otherwise, internet) titled "All Too Well," which is widely believed to be about Gyllenhaal. In the track, Swift reflects on looking at her then-boyfriend's childhood photos, singing, "Photo album on the counter/Your cheeks were turning red/You used to be a little kid with glasses in a twin-sized bed."

So when Gyllenhaal posted a photo of himself as, quite literally, a little kid with glasses, Swift fans could not help but quote those lyrics in the comments. At time of writing, there's almost 8,000 comments on the Instagram photo, and I'd wager at least 75% of those are from Swifties.

The closest Gyllenhaal's come to discussing his relationship with Swift was in 2017—and even then, he pretty much dodged the question. Jeff Bauman, a Boston Marathon survivor who Gyllenhaal played in the movie Stronger, brought up Swift during an interview, asking, "If you lost your legs in real life, do you think Taylor Swift would write a song about it?" Gyllenhaal's response: "For me, or about it?"

Bauman clarified, "For you—like a country song," and Gyllenhaal seized the opportunity to joke his way out of the tight spot. "She sort of moved into pop now," he said. And alas, the Swift questions ended there.