Jake Gyllenhaal Says His Comment That Bathing Is 'Less Necessary, at Times' Was 'Sarcastic'

Jake Gyllenhaal is setting the record straight about his now-infamous hygiene habits.

The actor addressed his buzzed-about August interview with Vanity Fair — during which he said he finds bathing to be "less necessary, at times" — at a screening of his upcoming Netflix film The Guilty.

"I don't know what it was. I answered a question where I was being sarcastic and ironic, and it's followed me around," he said, according to BuzzFeed.

"Unfortunately, I showered before I came here," he continued. "So...I'm sorry."

In August, the Academy Award-nominated actor confessed to Vanity Fair that "more and more I find bathing to be less necessary, at times."

He added, "I do also think that there's a whole world of not bathing that is also really helpful for skin maintenance, and we naturally clean ourselves."

But he does believe in brushing his teeth: "I do believe, because Elvis Costello is wonderful, that good manners and bad breath get you nowhere. So I do [brush my teeth]."

Gyllenhaal said cutting down his bath time is all to improve the health of his skin. "I do also think that there's a whole world of not bathing that is also really helpful for skin maintenance, and we naturally clean ourselves."

He also talked about the wonders of the bath accessory, the loofah (natural loofahs are made from a gourd in the cucumber family), which he said "baffles" him. "They feel like they've been made in a factory but, in fact, it's just not true. Since I was young, it's amazed me," he said of their natural source.

The interview came one week after Ashton's Kutcher and wife Mila Kunis shared their hotly debated views on bathing during an appearance on Dax Shepard and Monica Padman's Armchair Expert podcast.

"I wash my armpits and my crotch daily, and nothing else ever," Kutcher said of his soap usage. "I got a bar of Lever 2000 that delivers every time. Nothing else."

The only exception is face washing. "I do have a tendency to throw some water on my face after a workout to get all the salts out," Kutcher admitted.

While Kunis said, "I do wash my face twice a day."

The couple follows the same practice for their two children, saying they don't bathe them with soap everyday. "Now, here's the thing: If you can see the dirt on them, clean them. Otherwise, there's no point," Kutcher said.

Jason Momoa, Chris Evans, Cardi B and more celebs have since weighed in on the bathing debate.