An Australian film and television actor, Heath Andrew Ledger was born on April 4, 1979 in Perth, Western Australia. He studied in Mary’s Mount Primary School before attending Guildford Grammar School, where his first acting experiences began. His older sister, actress and publicist Kate Ledger, is said to be credited for his love of stage acting. He then left school with a friend to pursue his acting career when he was 16.
In 1996, Heath Ledger was given a role as Snowey Bowles in the TV series Sweat. This was followed by his first major acting break in 1997’s Australian movie Blackrock. Before this, he was involved in the fantasy-drama Roar, by the FOX Broadcasting Company. In 1998, he was cast in one of Australia’s most successful television shows, Home and Away. His performance in the acclaimed thriller Two Hands as Jimmy earned him a part in the 1999 romantic-comedy 10 Things I Hate About You opposite Julia Stiles.
After being cast several times as a teen “pretty boy,” he decided to shift away from this image and chose to take a role in 2000’s war-drama The Patriot, with Mel Gibson. This was followed by A Knight’s Tale and Monster’s Ball in 2001. To avoid being typecast, Heath Ledger chose to play a variety of characters. In 2002, he was given the title role in Ned Kelly, but the film didn’t have much success. This was followed by his portrayal of Jacob Grimm in The Brothers Grimm alongside Matt Damon. Heath Ledger rose to fame once again in the critically acclaimed Brokeback Mountain in 2005, and was nominated for the titles Golden Globe Best Actor in a Drama and for Academy Award Best Actor. Since he was only 26 at the time, he became the youngest actor to be nominated for the Best Actor Oscar. In 2007, he was one of the actors chosen to portray different stages of Bob Dylan’s life in the biopic I’m Not There. He then withdrew from the project, accepting instead a role with Sean Penn in Tree of Life. He was then cast as the infamous Joker in the Christopher Nolan-directed The Dark Knight, the sequel to the 2005 movie Batman Begins.
The iconic actor’s career was put to a halt when he was found dead in his Manhattan apartment on January 22, 2008. It was concluded that he died due to an accidental overdose of prescription drugs including sleeping pills, pain-killers and anti-anxiety medication.
Perth, Western Australia, Australia
He and his older sister, Kate Ledger, are named after the two main romantic characters of the Emily Bront? novel, "Wuthering Heights".
Auditioned for the part of Max on the TV show "Roswell" (1999). However, the show was originally developed for Fox and since he had already starred in "Roar" (1997), which was unsuccessful for Fox, they did not want to hire him.
Named one of People Magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People in 2001.
Dated Heather Graham. [October 2000 - June 2001]
Dated Naomi Watts from August 2002 to May 2004.
Was of Irish and Scottish ancestry.
Starred in 3 films which screened at the 2005 Venice Film Festival. They included Brokeback Mountain (2005), The Brothers Grimm (2005) and the out-of-competition Casanova (2005).
Met Michelle Williams on the set of Brokeback Mountain (2005).
Was the first non-American actor to portray the Joker.
Was very good friends with Jake Gyllenhaal, Russell Crowe, Ben Harper, Joaquin Phoenix
Favorite food was risotto
Independent Spirit Awards
2007 - Robert Altman Award, I'm Not There.
Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards
2005 – Las Vegas Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor, Brokeback Mountain.
MTV Movie Awards
2006 – Best Kiss, Brokeback Mountain – shared with Jake Gyllenhaal
New York Film Critics Awards
2005 – New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor, Brokeback Mountain
Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards
2005 – Phoenix Film Critics Society Award for Best Actor, Brokeback Mountain
San Francisco Film Critics Circle Awards
2005 – San Francisco Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor, Brokeback Mountain
2009: The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus - Tony
2008: The Dark Knight - The Joker
2007: I'm Not There - Robbie
2006: Candy - Dan
2005: Casanova - Casanova
2005: Brokeback Mountain - Ennis Del Mar
2005: The Brothers Grimm - Jacob Grimm
2005: Lords of Dogtown - Skip
2003: The Order - Alex Bernier
2003: Ned Kelly - Ned Kelly
2002: The Four Feathers - Harry Feversham
2001: Monster's Ball - Sonny Grotowski
2001: A Knight's Tale - Sir William Thatcher / Sir Ulrich von Lichtenstein of Gelderland
2000: The Patriot - Gabriel Martin
1997-2000: "Roar" - Conor (13 episodes)
1999: Two Hands - Jimmy
1999: 10 Things I Hate About You - Patrick Verona
1997: "Home and Away" - Scott Irwin (unknown episodes)
1997: Paws - Oberon
1997: Blackrock - Toby
1996: "Sweat" - Snowy Bowles (26 episodes)
1993: "Ship to Shore" - Cyclist
1992: Clowning Around - Orphan Clown
1. "I've got a strange mug. I photograph strangely"
2. "I'm Shy. People get confused. They think, as an actor you can get up and be confident on the screen. ‘Why aren't you like this in normal life? Why can't you act in your social life?' Because I can't!"
3. "For me, acting is a form of expression. I discovered this curiosity about human nature and how people work. I love what I do--the time between action and cut is precious"
Parents:
Mother was Sally Ramshaw and father was Kim Ledger.
Siblings:
Had three sisters: Catherine (Kate) Ledger, married to Nathan Buckey, and half sisters Olivia Ledger (b. 1997) and Ashleigh Bell (b. 1989).
Daughter:
Former fianc?e Michelle Williams gave birth to daughter Matilda Rose Ledger on 28 October 2005, who weighed in at 6 lb, 5 oz.
- Jake Gyllenhaal is the godfather of his daughter Matilda.