Before his sudden passing from intoxication in January 2008, Heath Ledger was one of the most promising talents in Hollywood. He possessed a long-lasting legacy that's always been imitated but never been duplicated. He earned his first-ever win at the Oscars in 2009 posthumously for his portrayal of The Joker in The Dark Knight, celebrating the great career he had. The film itself ended up becoming one of the highest-grossing and most accomplished films of the year, amassing over a billion in box office out of its $185 million production budget.
However, the late actor was so much more than who he became after putting on the mask of the supervillain. He's more than just 'The Joker:' He kicked off his acting career in his home country, became one of the youngest Oscar nominees ever and even launched an entertainment company of his own. Here's a look at the great late Heath Ledger's career before becoming The Joker.
6 Heath Ledger's Early Career In Home Country
Before relocating to the US in the late 1990s, young Heath Ledger kicked off his legendary acting career in his home country Australia. He left high school at the age of 16 with his old friend to move from one city to another to secure acting roles. He finally made his debut in 1997 with the teen drama thriller Blackrock, which also happened to be Steven Vidler's directorial debut. The film marked an important cornerstone in his career even though he's had small uncredited cameo parts in 1991's Clowning Around.
5 Heath Ledger Starred In Shaun Cassidy's 'Roar'
In the same year, Heath Ledger, aged 18, was a part of Shaun Cassidy's short-lived fantasy drama Roar. Aired on Fox Broadcasting Company, Roar took its audience all the way back to the year 400 AD and chronicles the life of a young Irish man, played by Ledger, in the wake of Roman's invasion. Interestingly though, the television series also starred Vera Farmiga and Sebastian Roche, who then became the star of the Insidious franchise and The CW's Vampire Diaries, respectively.
4 Heath Ledger Became One Of The Youngest Oscar Nominees With 'Brokeback Mountain'
Fast-forward to the age of 26, Heath Ledger became an exciting Hollywood prospect. His 2005's portrayal of the perplexed American cowboy in the neo-Western romance Brokeback Mountain with Jake Gyllenhaal propelled his career to a whole new level. It's an important cornerstone, not only for Ledger's career but also for the portrayal of gay people in the mainstream media. Commercially speaking, Brokeback Mountain scored over $178 million at the box office out of its $14 million budget.
"I think it's an incredible shame that people go out of their way to voice their disgust or their negative opinions against the ways in which two people choose to love each other," he clapped back against the film's critics who responded to the film's portrayal of gay people, "At least voice your opinions about how two people show hate and violence and anger towards one another."
3 Heath Ledger's Relationship With Michelle Williams
Heath Ledger had been linked with quite a few finest Hollywood women. He met actress Michelle Williams on the set of Brokeback Mountain back in 2004, and they dated for years. In fact, his daughter, Matilda Rose, was born in that relationship in October 2005. He even put his Australian house for sale to settle down with the actress in Brooklyn until their break-up in 2007. Besides the two-time Golden Globe-winning actress, Ledger had also been previously linked with Helena Christensen, Gemma Ward, Naomi Watts, and Heather Graham.
2 Heath Ledger's Entertainment Company
A passionate director at heart, Ledger launched his entertainment company The Masses and its musical record label subsidiary back in 2006 alongside Matt Amato and Jon Ramos. Some of the company's earliest works include Australian rapper N'fa Jones' debut album Cause An Effect and its single "Seduction Is Evil." Additionally, they also developed music videos for artists like Beach House, Ben Harper, Bon Iver, Nick Drake, and Modest Mouse.
"He loved the idea of being around like-minded, creative people and doing work as a group. He had already put together this company, the Masses, which was kind of a troupe of people who did communal creative work, and I think he thrived in that," Todd Haynes told Interview Magazine about his long-time friend's dedication to the label.
1 Heath Ledger Struggled With Health Problems
Unfortunately, the height of Hollywood's fame seems to have taken its toll on the actor years before his passing. Heath Ledger began developing sleeping problems circa 2006 or 2007, especially during the set of The Dark Knight.
“Last week I probably slept an average of two hours a night,” he recalled in an interview with The New York Times. “I couldn’t stop thinking. My body was exhausted, and my mind was still going."
