On January 22, 2008, Heath Ledger was found unconscious, face down, in his bed in his SoHo apartment in Manhattan, New York. The life of the talented Australian actor ended too soon and shocked everyone: he was only 28 years old.
This Sunday Fifteen years have passed since a death as sad as it was unexpected. And which has acquired worldwide relevance thanks to the protagonist, the context and the circumstances: a Hollywood actor at the peak of his careerin the following months to play one of those roles that remained in history, e a fatal drug cocktail.
Much speculation has surrounded the reasons that led the actor to do so mix those pills in full paranoid glow. Some even slipped it it was due to the intense preparation he underwent to impersonate the Joker in the Batman saga made by Christopher Nolan.
At the time, his family denied these rumors. “He began to say that he was depressed and that he was paying a high price for the role. It was just the opposite. He had a great sense of humor and only his family and close friends really knew about it.. I was having fun. I wasn’t down for the Joker,” their sisters Ashleigh and Kate agreed.
After a month of doubts, rumors and speculations that were published in the media -there was talk of suicide-, the autopsy established that the interpreter born in Perth in 1979 died of a combination of drugs that They are used to treat anxiety, depression, pain and insomnia..
It was a accidental deathas a result of drug abuse. “It was absolutely his fault. He got into drugs. You can’t blame anyone, it’s hard to bear, because I loved him‘ his father Kim said in 2016.
Michael Williamsthe great actress of Blue Valentine Y Manchester by the sea, Heath’s partner for three years -and with whom he had Matilda Rose, who is 17 today- he said on several occasions that since he met him on the set of Brokeback Mountain “he suffered from insomnia because I had an anxiety problem with depressive episodeswhich led me to take drugs.”
Gentleman, gay cowboy and psychotic villain
Son of a French teacher and a commercial engineer, Heath Andrew Ledger got his first taste of acting at the age of tenwhen he played Peter Pan in a school play.
At 16, Ledger dropped out of school to pursue acting exclusively: he moved to Sydney with a friend and began working on Australian TV series and films.
In 1997, he made the leap to Hollywoodshone in the teen romantic comedy Ten things I hate about you and had his first major role as the son of Mel Gibson in The patriot (2000). At the moment, the handsome and sensitive blond with angular features began to fascinate everyone in Corazón de caballero (2001).
Already at that point There was talk of the new “pretty boy in Hollywood” has left an exotic island to which They have come to offer him to be Spider-Manbut he didn’t accept because he was afraid to enter the Russian roulette of fame (“If I did that, I’d steal another actor’s dream”confided in his agent).
But I had to be a star. That refusal, a priori counterproductive, hijacked him into the wonderful clutches of Ang Lee, the Taiwanese who gave him that unforgettable gay cowboy from Brokeback Mountainwhere it paired with Jake Gyllenhaal and which he was certainly met with as an actor.
“After Secret in the mountainsHeath could do what he wanted. But he baffled us again and hit the Joker button again“Revealed Steve Alexander, manager of the Australian at the time.
His portrayal of the psychotic villain who drives Batman mad was not only warmly received by bat fans of DC, doubtful at first before choosing the actor, but also by all Hollywood critics.
At the 2009 Academy Awards, one year after Ledger’s death, the Academy decided to award him the award for best supporting actor, the second post-mortem award done in the history of this award (the previous one had been Peter Finchin 1977).
“Heath’s performance completely steals the film. It’s fantastic, like nothing I’ve seen before; it’s an amazing celebration of his talent,” acknowledged Christian Bale, who played none other than Batman in that film. Ledger had been nominated for an Oscar for Secret in the mountainsbut the statuette remained in the hands of Philip Seymour Hoffman for Coat.
documentary about his life
I’m Heath Ledgerthe documentary by Derik Murray released in April 2017, delves into the mysteries and secrets of the late actor’s life, with interviews with friends, colleagues and his family.
“He dreamed of fame and when he got it he didn’t want it anymore”says director Matt Amato. “He was always obsessed with Janis Joplin, Kurt Cobain and all those people who died at 27”says a childhood friend.
“I immediately sensed his love for Michelle (Williams) in the middle of filming Secret in the mountains“says the mischievous Ange Lee. “I think it was hard for him to keep up with who he was,” she points out. Naomi Wattsthe actress who he was a partner at Ledger between 2000 and 2002.
But one of the testimonies that best describes his life and his untimely death seems to be that of a friend of his who speaks in the documenta. “Heath was always talking about the things he had to do because I knew I wouldn’t be here long“, he acknowledged.
Source: Clarin
