After Heath Ledger’s tragic death, Johnny Depp was one of the many actors who gave out a gift to the actor’s daughter, Matilda Rose Ledger, as a way of looking out for her.
Ledger passed away aged 28
Heath Ledger was best known for his roles in The Dark Night, Brokeback Mountain, and the 1999 romcom 10 Things I Hate About You.
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The actor tragically passed away at a very young age, having only been 28 when he was found unresponsive in his New York apartment in January of 2008. His death was later ruled as an accidental overdose.
Ledger was survived by his daughter
The actor’s death was a shocking one on fans and co-stars alike, with the shockwaves reaching all corners of Hollywood.
Ledger was survived by his daughter Matilda Rose, whom he welcomed in 2005 with fellow actor Michelle Williams. His daughter was only two years old when he passed.
The actor’s co-stars rallied for his daughter
Following his untimely death, many of Ledger’s co-stars and fellow A-list friends got together to make sure his daughter was financially taken care of.
One of them was Johnny Depp who gave his entire salary from the movie The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus to Matilda.
Depp and Ledger co-starred in the movie
The 2009 movie which Depp and Ledger co-starred in would be Ledger’s last on-screen appearance. In fact, Ledger’s untimely death saw major changes made to the storyline of the movie as he died midway through filming.
The changes resulted in recasts, including the addition of actors Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell to the cast. Both Law and Farrell also pledged their salaries to Ledger’s daughter at the time.
Matilda is financially set for life
When it comes to finances, the actor’s now 19-year-old daughter is more than set for life, but she is also set to eventually inherit his estate which is rumored to be around $20M. This is after Ledger’s family voluntarily gave it to her as well.
Matilda Rose is said to now be living with her mother in NYC and tends to stay out of the spotlight.
Ledger’s legacy lives on in Hollywood
Although he died young, Ledger’s legacy as an actor lives beyond the grave. He cemented his place as one of the legends when he starred alongside Christian Bale in Christopher Nolan’s 2008 Batman movie The Dark Knight.
His role as the Joker awarded him an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, a BAFTA and a Golden Globe.
His co-workers spoke about watching him act
According to his co-stars, Ledger was incredibly talented in his craft, with Michael Caine once admitting he was ‘terrified’ after watching Ledger in action as the Joker for the first time.
“Absolutely floored me the first time I saw him in action – I was terrified,” Caine wrote in his memoir. “It still makes me sad to think of it… [it’s] a performance for the ages,” he added.
