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When Taylor Swift released a re-recording of her album Red late last year, it included a new 10-minute version of her fan-favorite song "All Too Well" and it painted her ex-boyfriend Jake Gyllenhaal in a less than favorable light.
Now the Donnie Darko star has broken his silence on Swift and the frenzy surrounding the song but his remarks are not adding up for Swifties.
"It has nothing to do with me. It's about her relationship with her fans," Gyllenhaal said of the song in an interview with Esquire, while admitting he hadn't listened to Swift's album.
The two (allegedly) briefly dated back in 2010 when she was 20 and he was 29 and the song is about their relationship and subsequent break up.
With the re-release, Swift, 32, also produced a 10-minute video for the song starring Dylan O'Brien and Sadie Sink and wrote new lines such as "I'll get older, but your lovers stay my age," which sparked a huge backlash against the actor.
Gyllenhaal, 41, added that he doesn't "begrudge" Swift tapping into her experiences for her songs.
"It is her expression," he said. "Artists tap into personal experiences for inspiration, and I don't begrudge anyone that."
However, many Swifties are confused at Gyllenhaal's remark that the song "has nothing to do" with him.
"It's literally all about you but go off sis," read one tweet. "But I'm glad that he's aware that expressing themselves in the best way they know how through art is one of Taylor's best skills as an artist, storyteller and songwriter."
Another added: "Not Jake trying to explain what HER song is about."
Meanwhile, several people have applauded Gyllenhaal's maturity in discussing the situation.
"Mature response but it's literally about him," reads another tweet.
Speaking of Swift's fans and the backlash and cyberbullying in general, Gyllenhaal said: "At some point, I think it's important when supporters get unruly that we feel a responsibility to have them be civil and not allow for cyberbullying in one's name," he said.
"That begs for a deeper philosophical question. Not about any individual, per se, but a conversation that allows us to examine how we can—or should, even—take responsibility for what we put into the world, our contributions into the world. How do we provoke a conversation?"
The singer is in the process of re-recording her first six albums after ownership of their masters was transferred to record executive Scooter Braun.
While her albums feature new versions of old songs, she also includes music "from the vault" that fans haven't heard yet.
