Heath Ledger Heath Ledger Heath Andrew Ledger (4 April 197922 January 2008) was an Australian actor and director. After performing roles in several Australian television and film productions during the 1990s, Ledger left for the United States in 1998 to further develop his film career. His work comprised nineteen films, including "10 Things I Hate About You" (1999), "The Patriot" (2000), "A Knight's Tale" (2001), "Monster's Ball" (2001), "Lords of Dogtown" (2005), "Brokeback Mountain" (2005), "Casanova" (2005), "The Dark Knight" (2008), and "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus" (2009), the latter two being posthumous releases. He also produced and directed music videos and
The Patriot (2000 film) his life in peace until revenge drives him to lead a cause against a national enemy after the life of an innocent family member is taken. Joshua Jackson, Elijah Wood, Jake Gyllenhaal and Brad Renfro were considered to play Gabriel Martin. The producers and director narrowed their choices for this role to Ryan Phillippe and Heath Ledger, with the latter chosen because the director thought he possessed "exuberant youth". The film's German director Emmerich said "these were characters I could relate to, and they were engaged in a conflict that had a significant outcome—the creation of the first modern democratic