How Well Do You Remember Heath Ledger?
- by Ben Sherlock
- – on
- in Movies and TV
Like Philip Seymour Hoffman and River Phoenix, Heath Ledger was a terrific actor who was tragically taken from us long before his time. Ledger died on January 22, 2008, at the age of just 28, thanks to a cardiac arrest resulting from a mixture of prescription drugs. Just one year senior than those in The 27 Club, Ledger was brimming with potential and he was gone far too soon. He had dreams beyond acting in movies; dreams of directing them. Before he died, he had his feature directorial debut lined up: an adaptation of the book The Queen’s Gambit by Walter Tevis, which he would’ve also starred in alongside Ellen Page.
Heath Ledger is still dearly missed today, almost ten years after he passed away. His fans were deeply affected by his death, with the Associated Press announcing, “Heath Ledger’s death was voted 2008’s top entertainment story by US newspaper and broadcast editors surveyed by the Associated Press.” His passing swept the world with, as they put it, “shock and confusion” and a love for the actor’s “legacy.” This is shown in the loving tribute that is Spike TV’s new documentary I Am Heath Ledger, which was made to honor the life and work of the actor in anticipation of the tenth anniversary of his tragic passing next January. Ledger had many devoted fans. See how well you remember the actor by answering these questions!
What country is he from?
Like many great actors, Heath Ledger found super stardom in Hollywood despite not being an American. He was one of those movie stars who would play American characters in movies so well that you’d think he was American himself, until he appeared on a talk show and you heard his accent and realized he wasn’t, just like Andrew Garfield or Chris Hemsworth or Idris Elba. They all hail from English speaking countries, but not America. So, which country is Heath Ledger actually from?
Which actress did he date for three years?
Heath Ledger was a hot item in Hollywood, dating all kinds of actresses and models throughout his life. He had many high profile relationships with women, but none more high profile than the three years between 2004 and 2007 that he spent paired with one actress in particular. In 2005, they had a baby daughter together, but sadly in late 2007, they ended their relationship. So, who was this woman? Who was the actress that he dated during this time?
What is Heath Ledger’s Joker catchphrase?
Heath Ledger’s ground-breaking portrayal of the Joker in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight is still quoted and imitated to this day. It was perhaps the most iconic characterizations by an actor in film history. The actor won a posthumous Oscar for his work in the role – an Academy Award for a comic book movie, it’s unheard of! He was replaced by Jared Leto for Suicide Squad, but as good as he is in the role, it pales in comparison to Heath Ledger. But what was his catchphrase?
Which actor WASN’T in The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus?
Heath Ledger was in the middle of shooting Terry Gilliam’s The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus when he died in the January of 2008, and had completed about half of his scenes. Gilliam still wanted audiences to be able to see Ledger’s final movie performance, so he added the element of “fantasy transformations” into the movie. This way, other actors could step in to play Ledger’s character in the other scenes, and many great A-listers stepped up – but who DIDN’T?
What was his breakout movie?
Heath Ledger’s breakout movie – the one that propelled him to the status of movie star – was a popular teen romantic comedy that was a modernization of the William Shakespeare play The Taming of the Shrew. He starred alongside Julia Stiles and Joseph Gordon Levitt, who also broke out into stardom as a result of this movie. Ledger’s performance was well-received by critics (as was the movie), who said, “Julia Stiles and Heath Ledger add strong performances to an unexpectedly clever script.” But what was the movie?
What Queen song plays in the intro of A Knight’s Tale?
In 2000 and 2001, Heath Ledger did two historical movies back to back. The first, The Patriot, co-starred Mel Gibson, but the second, A Knight’s Tale, was all Ledger. It’s a medieval movie, but it’s told like a modern story, with anachronistic elements and a sense of humor. Also, it features historical roles, with Paul Bettany playing Geoffrey Chaucer and James Purefoy playing Edward the Black Prince of Wales. It also has a kick ass rock ‘n’ roll soundtrack, opening with a cool tune by Queen. Which one was it?
What made Brokeback Mountain so controversial?
Heath Ledger’s romance movie Brokeback Mountain was a phenomenal success back in 2005 when it was released to critical acclaim and huge box office numbers. The critics loved it so much, in fact, that when Brokeback was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture and then did not win, there was a huge debate over whether or not it should’ve taken the prize. Many critics considered Brokeback to be the superior movie Crash, which wound up taking the prize.
Who is Ledger’s incarnation of Bob Dylan in I’m Not There?
I’m Not There is a revolutionary kind of biopic directed by Todd Haynes. In its opening, it proclaims that it is “inspired by the music and the many lives of Bob Dylan,” although Dylan himself is never mentioned and he only has a small part in the soundtrack. Rather, this is a movie about six people who incarnate a dimension of Dylan, played by Christian Bale, Cate Blanchett, Marcus Carl Franklin, Richard Gere, Ben Whishaw, and yes, Heath Ledger. Ledger’s character is a struggling actor. What is his name?
What is Ledger’s character’s fate in Monster’s Ball?
In 2001, Heath Ledger appeared alongside Billy Bob Thornton and Halle Berry in the harrowing drama Monster’s Ball. Mark Foster, the director of Monster’s Ball, had nothing but good things to say about the process of working with Ledger, saying that he took the role “very seriously,” and showed a lot of discipline, observational skills, understanding, and intuition on the set. It’s a great movie about dealing with loss. Ledger’s character comes to a tragic end during the movie. What happens?
Which famous lothario did Heath Ledger play in a biopic?
In 2005, Heath Ledger starred in a biopic based on the life of a famous lothario who bedded many women in pursuit of the real meaning of love. The movie didn’t do so well, especially compared to the $178 million worldwide box office success of Brokeback Mountain in the same year, in addition to Ledger’s Oscar nomination for Brokeback. But it’s not half bad, even though its 44% Rotten Tomatoes score will tell you otherwise. So, which famous lothario did Ledger play?
True or False: Heath Ledge won an Oscar after he died.
It was quite astounding when Heath Ledger was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in The Dark Knight. Not because he didn’t deserve it, because he did and then some, but because it was a superhero movie. It’s a movie based on a comic book. The Academy tends to ignore them. But Ledger’s staggering portrayal of the Joker was too amazing to be ignored. Though he had already passed away, was he awarded the Oscar for his role?
On what kids’ show did Heath Ledger get his start?
Heath Ledger’s first ever screen acting credit was on a children’s show. He played a small role, simply billed as “Cyclist,” for three episodes. That started one of the great acting careers of our generation. He would go on to use his acting ability to change the public opinion of LGBT rights and elevate comic book movies from disposable summer blockbusters to have the potential to be true art. But it all began on this kids’ show. What was it?
Complete the Joker quote: “You wanna know how I got these...” what?
Heath Ledger will be remembered for a lot of things: the music videos he directed, the daughter he raised, the countless great movies he either starred in or played a supporting role in (Brokeback Mountain, A Knight’s Tale, Monster’s Ball, The Patriot, I’m Not There – the list goes on!). But there’s one role he will be remembered for above all others: the Joker. This is mainly because he’s endlessly quotable. So, complete the Joker quote: “You wanna know how I got these...” what?
Which country’s football league did Heath Ledger follow?
Football is too vague of a term for one sport to nail down. There are different rules in different countries. American football, the game played in the NFL, is just one version of it. There’s a different set of rules for football in Australia, and a different league in Canada, and in England, what they call football is what the rest of the world would call soccer. So, football is too vague. Heath Ledger was an avid follower of one country’s football league. Which one was it?
What soap opera did Heath Ledger appear in?
Early on in his career, long before he was a charismatic movie star with the charm of James Dean (at least according to his I’m Not There director Todd Haynes), Heath Ledger had to get by with small roles on television shows. One of his earliest roles was a 10 episode stint on a popular soap opera, playing a character named Scott Irwin. This was not the first time a big Hollywood star began on a soap opera, but it’s one of the most memorable. Which soap opera was it?
Which Grimm brother did Heath Ledger play?
Terry Gilliam’s The Brothers Grimm did not portray the brothers who wrote all the fairy tales we now know and love as they actually were. Gilliam exaggerated them and portrayed them as a pair of con artists. The brothers were played by Heath Ledger and Matt Damon, long before NBC found success with its original drama series Grimm. The movie only made $105 million on its $88 million budget, but it’s pretty good. Anyway, which of the two brothers did Ledger play?
Which Emily Bronte novel is he named after?
Heath Ledger’s full name is Heathcliff Andrew Ledger. The name Heathcliff comes from the male protagonist in a classic novel written by Emily Bronte. His older sister, Kate, herself an actress who later moved into the world of public relations, was named after the female protagonist of the novel, Catherine. It’s a great namesake to have, as it tells of the class divide in Victorian England and a love story for the ages. What is the name of the novel?
Who was Heath Ledger’s childhood hero?
Everyone has an actor who they look up to as a child. They see these heroic people up on the silver screen and fall in love with them. They idolize them, as they’re up there doing everything they wish they could do if they weren’t a kid. This is especially true of actors, who do grow up to do those things on the big screen, and so it’s important who those idols are. For Heath Ledger, it was a star of corny action movies of the 1980s. Which one was it?
Which musician was Heath Ledger obsessed with?
There was one particular singer with whom Heath Ledger was obsessed. He was infatuated with this guy’s music. The singer actually died as far back as 1974 at the age of 26. The cause of death appeared to the coroner’s examination to be from an overdose of the antidepressant amitriptyline. Ledger directed a music video set to one of this guy’s songs and was planning to direct a documentary based on his life before his own was tragically cut short. But who was the musician?
Which Kubrick character inspired Heath Ledger’s portrayal of the Joker?
To prepare for his role as the Joker in The Dark Knight, Heath Ledger reportedly locked himself away in a motel room for six weeks to get into the character’s psychology. He described his take on the character as a “psychopathic, mass murdering, schizophrenic clown with zero empathy.” He apparently designed his own makeup for the role and took inspiration from Sex Pistols rocker Sid Vicious for the chaotic look. He also took inspiration from one crazy, maniacal character from a Stanley Kubrick movie. Which character was it?
What superhero role was Heath Ledger offered?
Long before he made movie history in the greatest superhero flick of all time with his performance as the Joker in The Dark Knight alongside Christian Bale’s Batman, Heath Ledger was offered a leading role in a superhero franchise where he would’ve played the good guy. This was back in his early career, in the days of A Knight’s Tale and Monster’s Ball, back when he was up and coming. He turned the role down, and God only knows what would’ve happened if he’d said yes. What role was it?
Which of these Heath Ledger movies made the most money?
Obviously Heath Ledger’s biggest financial hit was The Dark Knight, which made over $1 billion at the worldwide box office when it was released in theaters a few months after his untimely passing. But he had a number of other box office hits throughout his career. The Dark Knight overshadowed them all with its shattering of multiple box office records, but he had a good string of blockbusters throughout his acting career. Which of these four Heath Ledger movies made the most money?
What is the name of Heath Ledger’s daughter?
As well as being a talented actor and music video director, and dating half of the women in Hollywood, Heath Ledger was also a devoted father. He had a daughter, whose mother he met in 2004, one year before their baby was born. Unfortunately, they broke up in 2007, but they remained devoted to their daughter. Her godparents are Ledger’s Brokeback Mountain co-star Jake Gyllenhaal and his ex’s Dawson’s Creek co-star Busy Philipps. What is the name of Ledger's daughter?
What game was Heath Ledger great at?
When Heath Ledger was a kid, he played a certain game at all kinds of tournaments and won them all. As an avid player and a natural at it, he won his home country’s junior championship of the game at the age of 10, and even as an adult with a busy moviemaking schedule, he still made time to play the game with other great players in Washington Square Park. It was one of his passions. But which game was it?
Which actress DIDN’T Heath Ledger date?
In addition to the three year relationship Heath Ledger had that resulted in a child, he had many other romantic relationships that the press knew about. The tabloid media were all over Heath Ledger after he broke up with the mother of his child, heavily publicizing his romantic conquests of super models such as Helena Christensen and Gemma Ward as he was newly single. But he was best known in the press for his relationships with fellow thespians. Which of these actresses did Heath Ledger NOT date?