In an interview with The Onion's A.V. Club this week, Maggie Gyllenhaal said she had refused the part of Rachel Dawes in The Dark Knight because she had no interest in playing a woman "in peril."

The truth is, what I didn't want to be was just the sort of empty lady who gets thrown around by different guys and doesn't have anything to do but look scared. I just wanted her to be a real person.

It's understandable, then, that her male co-stars in the film have given quotes to the media about Gyllenhaal's steadfastness in not being a damsel in distress after she did eventually take on the role. Even when her character is being threatened by The Joker at knifepoint, Gyllenhaal does not flinch (something tells me the original Rachel, Kate Holmes, would have started to cry at this point.)

Gyllenhaal has a strong sense of the roles she wants to play, and her instincts haven't seemed to fail her yet. Even in her smallish role as Rachel, she is convincing (and stunning, of course) as a lawyer who knows Bruce Wayne's secret vigilante identity. Though the male stars of the film have been getting most of the attention, Gyllenhaal graces this month's cover of Marie Claire. In the story, her co-star Aaron Eckhart is quoted as having said, "Maggie's got a lot of sass. She has very strong opinions on acting and things outside moviemaking. She's not afraid to speak her mind." … continue reading

They say behind every great man is a great woman. While we AfterEllen.commers might take issue with that first gender, the saying definitely holds true in the to big-budget superhero movies coming soon to a theater near you. In fact, USA Today recently interviewed the trio of Gwyneth Paltrow, Liv Tyler and Maggie Gyllenhaal, or — as I like to call them — the supergirlfriends of summer.

All three actors are more known for their dramatic or independent film work, and all three are now stepping into mainstream comic book movie heroine roles. They're the superheroes' girlfriends/potential love interests: Gwyneth as Pepper Potts in Iron Man, Liv as Betty Ross in The Incredible Hulk, and Maggie as Rachel Dawes in The Dark Knight.

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Once a year the U.S. pauses and takes stock of the important role that the administrative assistant holds in our businesses. Their tireless and often thankless efforts are what really gets things done in this capitalist world. So in honor of them, I thought I'd take a moment to recognize this day by looking at a few of our favorite paper-pushing women in television and film:

Pam Beesly, The Office

Photo credit: Mitchell Haaseth/NBC

Who wouldn't want to have someone like Pam Beesley (Jenna Fischer) working in his or her office? Pam is an adorable, cute-as-a-button receptionist with a high tolerance for her boss's awkward comments. I can only imagine all the work that I wouldn't get done trying to impress her with my office prank suggestions. … continue reading

Seems I'm not the only one out there who thinks brains are an essential part of the beauty package. Personally, I can only look for so long before wanting to carry on a coherent, intelligent conversation about something a little deeper than fashion. I also like to be able to use words that contain more than a single syllable.

There are plenty of lists out there detailing beauties with big brains, but this one does a better job than most. The list includes some of the most obvious brainy beauties, like Jodie Foster, Natalie Portman and Jennifer Beals. But, like any list, it is far from complete. So because I know you are all simply beside yourselves waiting for another list, I will keep you waiting no longer. Here are some of the women who prove to me that smart is sexy. Think of it as my anti-Britney list.

Maggie Gyllenhaal

She has a degree in literature from Columbia University. She also tends to choose roles that involve a whole lot of brain power, and she isn't afraid to speak her mind. I love that in a woman. … continue reading

One of the things I enjoy most about the AfterEllen.com blog is that, while it may have the occasional variation on a hot 100 theme, the entries tend to focus on more than just pretty faces (or pretty arms, abs, instances of that other "a" word ... you get the point). Writers call out crap when they see it, lists are more fun than prurient, and the blog overall covers less Lindsay, more Lena and Leisha.

However, it's likely safe to say that few of us read absolutely, strictly for "the articles." The pictures are quite a nice bonus, and sometimes they're quite nice period, like these recent shots of indie darling Maggie Gyllenhaal.

Nice doesn't begin to cover it (or her — see the uncropped photos here). But is it really as simple as a sexy smile and some snark?

Of course not, most of us would say, as does Kira Cochrane of The Guardian. It must be body image week for me, because I can't resist posting about her interesting take on the oft-tread, never-resolved topic of sex and sales.

Cochrane starts by examining Nicole Kidman's recent Vanity Fair series ("passionless and perfunctory") alongside the Agent Provocateur Gyllenhaal campaign ("awkward and unhappy"), and then explains that she finds these pics particularly depressing because they involve not just "any" women as sex objects, but "talented" women as sex objects. Apparently it's all right — or at least not surprising — for sentence-winning Paris Hilton, but different for Oscar-winning Kidman. … continue reading

Maggie Gyllenhaal is reportedly in "final talks" to replace Katie Holmes in the next Batman movie. That loud whooshing noise you just heard? The collective sigh of relief heaved by fans everywhere. The last Batman film, Batman Begins, had such fabulous potential. Directed by Christopher Nolan (Memento)? Check! Starring pretty, brooding actor Christian Bale (Velvet Goldmine) as the melancholic Caped Crusader? Check! Featuring the blank slate-ish Katie Holmes as Batman's feisty love interest? Um.....

Pre-Cruise-ology, I had no opinion one way or the other about Ms. Holmes (I was never a big Dawson's Creek fan, but when I did check it out, it was for the dishy Michelle Williams) so it's not as if I were rooting against her when Batman Begins was released. It's just that she seemed woefully miscast as the tough, bleeding heart attorney who goes head to head with her childhood love, Bruce Wayne. For me, she had no depth, no pathos. And a girl needs ample reserves of pathos if she's going to be the Bat Babe, right?

That's why I'm so excited to learn that Maggie Gyllenhaal may be stepping into the role originally played by Holmes. The always amazing Gyllenhaals's recent turn in SherryBaby is getting rave reviews, but I'll always think of her as the complicated little masochist from Secretary.