Heath Ledger dead at age 28

Torgo · January 22, 2008, 07:27:19 PM

I read on AICN that Heath had already done all of his post production work on The Dark Knight due to his commitment as 2nd lead in Terry Gilliam's new film which he was in the midst of making.

Killer Bees · January 22, 2008, 07:32:14 PM

Yes, sadly, it's true. Aussie actor Heath Ledger (The Patriot,10 Things I Hate About You) has died of a suspected drug overdose.

Of course, the NYPD aren't ruling anything out at this stage.

Check out the front page story on www.smh.com.au

indianasmith · January 22, 2008, 07:37:35 PM

I hated to hear this; I loved several of his movies . . . especially THE PATRIOT and A KNIGHT'S TALE. I have never understood the temptation to use drugs at all; I've been offered many times when I was young and was never even curious about it. Why can't these Hollywood types leave the pills alone?

Mr_Vindictive · January 22, 2008, 07:41:08 PM

Quote from: indianasmith on January 22, 2008, 07:37:35 PM
I hated to hear this; I loved several of his movies . . . especially THE PATRIOT and A KNIGHT'S TALE. I have never understood the temptation to use drugs at all; I've been offered many times when I was young and was never even curious about it. Why can't these Hollywood types leave the pills alone?

Apparently it was sleeping pills. If you read the Wiki entry that Oldskool was kind enough to link, you'll see that after his portrayal of the Joker, he has not been able to sleep. The pills were over the counter sleeping pills rather than illegal drugs. I have a feeling he had probably been drinking and decided to take some sleeping pills, and accidentally OD.

Shadow · January 22, 2008, 07:43:39 PM

That sucks. He was talented and likable - the sort women swoon over and guys want to hang out with. RIP.

threnody · January 22, 2008, 08:19:37 PM

The news took me by surprise. It's awful.

Rest in peace, Mr. Ledger.

Snivelly · January 22, 2008, 08:20:47 PM

Quote from: Allhallowsday on January 22, 2008, 06:20:27 PM
Quote from: Snivelly on January 22, 2008, 05:42:40 PM
So, I wonder who the next one will be? It always seems to happen in threes.
Well, SUZANNE PLESHETTE just died (January 19)...
All three, too young to go, sad news, all will be sorely missed...

Yep, I forgot all about Ms. Pleshette passing away.

Sad news, Ledger had a small child and his career was doing well, hopefully it was an accident and not the result of something stupid.

KYGOTC · January 22, 2008, 08:45:22 PM

Quote from: Ash on January 22, 2008, 05:53:34 PM
You should check the rest of the board before starting a topic.
This has already been posted in the Press Releases & News section.

Well SOOOOORRRRREEEEEEEE!!!

ER · January 22, 2008, 11:51:58 PM

I was shocked at this sad news. He'll be missed. And he leaves behind a little girl, too.

indianasmith · January 22, 2008, 11:58:59 PM

That is the saddest bit of all. Little girls need to have dads . . . and moms, of course . . .who care about them and love them above all. I can't imagine losing either of my two daughters, and I don't want them to lose me (not till I've achieved my target age of 137, anyway!)

trekgeezer · January 23, 2008, 08:35:05 AM

I caught part of Larry King last night and they had people on the scene that said the cops had ruled out suicide. Several people said Ledger was suffering from pneumonia and he had just flown back in from London where he was working on that Gilliam film.

So this may have been an accidental overdose.

The first time I saw Heath was in the tv show Roar. He was only 17 or 18 at the time he made it. It showed on Fox in the summer of 1997 (only 8 of 13 eps were shown. I think SciFi replayed the series in like 2000 and actually showed all 13 eps.

KYGOTC · January 23, 2008, 12:41:33 PM

Here's some sick news.

Those born-again christian extremist bastards are pickiting Ledger's funeral because he was in Brokeback mountain. Can you beleive that? Just think of what his friends and family will be feeling when they see those religious zombies walking around yelling hatful things about him when he did nothing to hurt any of them. I know this sounds bad, but I really hope Ledger's mourners will get a fight to break out with those puss-sacks. Show those bastards that weve had ENOUGH.

AndyC · January 23, 2008, 02:31:50 PM

I've said it before and I'll say it again: Evangelical Christians have done more harm to the cause of religion through boneheaded stunts like that than any atheist could ever hope to do. One movie is not reason enough to deny a man some dignity at his funeral, or harass his loved ones for that matter. Somebody needs to get a little perspective.

Oldskool138 · January 23, 2008, 02:47:18 PM

Quote from: AndyC on January 23, 2008, 02:31:50 PM
I've said it before and I'll say it again: Evangelical Christians have done more harm to the cause of religion through boneheaded stunts like that than any atheist could ever hope to do. One movie is not reason enough to deny a man some dignity at his funeral, or harass his loved ones for that matter. Somebody needs to get a little perspective.

The Westboro Baptist Church is not representative of most evangelicals. They are a small church with a congregation of about 100 people and most of them are in the same family. They are the ultimate douche-bags...I know some evangelicals and they're kind people. Don't let these rotten apple spoil the bunch.

AndyC · January 23, 2008, 03:03:38 PM

Agreed. That's exactly what bugs me. Bad apples like these are tarnishing the image of all Christians - and not just evangelicals, but mainline Christians like myself.