Heath Ledger

Heath Andrew Ledger was born in Perth, Western Australia, in 1979. After early roles in Australian television, he moved to the United States and charmed audiences in the 1999 teen comedy 10 Things I Hate About You. He quickly resisted being typecast as a heartthrob, choosing demanding parts in The Patriot, Monster's Ball, and the medieval adventure A Knight's Tale instead.

Ledger's portrayal of Ennis Del Mar in Brokeback Mountain (2005) earned him an Academy Award nomination and established him as an actor of rare depth and restraint. He then disappeared entirely into the role of the Joker in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight, a performance of astonishing invention that redefined what a comic-book film could be and became one of cinema's most acclaimed screen villains.

Ledger died in New York in January 2008, at twenty-eight, from an accidental combination of prescription medications, months before The Dark Knight premiered. He was awarded the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor posthumously in 2009, accepted by his family. His small but remarkable body of work continues to inspire actors, a testament to craft, courage, and total commitment to the art.