Claim: Maggie Gyllenhaal acts.

Donnie Darko is a 2001 science fiction film written and directed by Richard Kelly . It stars Jake Gyllenhaal , Jena Malone , Drew Barrymore , Mary McDonnell , Katharine Ross , Patrick Swayze , Noah Wyle , and Maggie Gyllenhaal . The film follows the adventures of the troubled title character as he seeks the meaning behind his Doomsday-related visions .   Filmed over the course of 28 days -LRB- coincidentally mirroring the time transpired in the movie -RRB- , the film was almost released straight-to-video . Donnie Darko was screened at the Sundance Film Festival on January 19 , 2001 , before receiving a limited theatrical release on October 26 , 2001 by Flower Films . Due to the film 's advertising featuring a crashing plane and the September 11 attacks that transpired a month before , the film was scarcely advertised . In the end , Donnie Darko grossed just under $ 7.3 million worldwide on a budget of $ 4.5 million .   Despite its lackluster box office performance , Donnie Darko received critical acclaim . Critics lauded the film 's story , acting , and tone . The film was listed # 2 in Empires `` 50 Greatest Independent Films of All Time '' list , as well as # 53 in Empire 's 500 Greatest Movies of All Time . It was released on VHS and DVD in March 2002 . The film became a surprising success on the home video market , reportedly grossing over $ 10 million in home video sales . It has been released on Blu-ray three times : on February 10 , 2009 , July 19 , 2010 , and December 12 , 2016 . The film has also developed a cult following .   The film 's soundtrack is also famous for its cover of Tears for Fears 's `` Mad World '' by Gary Jules and Michael Andrews . The cover reached number one on the UK Singles Chart and stayed there for three consecutive weeks . The song also achieved lukewarm success in the United States , reaching number 30 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart .   A director 's cut was released in 2004 , on a two-disc special edition DVD . A stage adaptation appeared in 2007 , and a sequel , S. Darko , in 2009 .