Stephen Gaghan Unveils Poignant New Insights into Heath Ledger’s Sorrowful Passing for the First Time
Bollywoodfever, March 2: Stephen Gaghan has disclosed poignant new insights about Heath Ledger’s sorrowful demise for the first time.
The acclaimed director, aged 58, recounted a heart-wrenching conversation he had with Heath’s father, Kim, following the beloved Australian actor’s passing on January 22, 2008.
Heath’s life came to a tragic end due to an accidental drug overdose in his New York apartment at the young age of 28. Sixteen years later, Stephen has opened up about how he was informed of this tragic event.
While appearing on Malcolm Gladwell’s podcast, Revisionist History: Development Hell – a series delving into projects that never reached fruition – he discussed a film titled Blink, which he had intended to create with Heath.
During the podcast, Stephen revealed that Heath was discovered with the Blink screenplay next to him, alongside one of Malcolm Gladwell’s books on his nightstand.
He shared the moment Heath’s father Kim, whom Stephen had never previously met, found his contact number on the screenplay and reached out to him after finding himself in a state of shock and mourning at the scene.
For the first time, speaking about that call, he recounted: ‘The dad and the guy who was closest to him in his professional life, they were there with the body and our script was in bed with him, and [Gladwell’s] book was on the bedside table.
‘My number was probably on the script, handwritten. These guys, as you can imagine, were in shock and they dialed that number and I don’t know why.’
He poignantly described how he ‘collapsed’ when he received the devastating news over the phone, while he was at an airport with his wife Minnie Mortimer.
‘I’m at an airport with my wife, transitioning from one location to another, and I just collapsed, something that had never occurred to me before or since,’ he expressed.
‘My legs just gave out. I had to sit down because I was like, ‘What?’
‘The intensity of emotion, what they were experiencing, I shouldn’t have been involved in any way, really. Yet, as a human being, or someone who cares, I was there, listening, and my wife was observing me.
‘I recall her expression, and I was utterly speechless. I just listened and listened. It was profoundly sad. And it remains sad. For me, I had to pause and reflect on it.’
Stephen also reminisced about his ‘exceptionally special’ relationship with Heath and their plans to collaborate on ‘a series of films’ with the Joker actor before his untimely death.
I met Heath Ledger and immediately felt a very deep connection with him. It was an unusual and exceptionally special bond for me,’ he shared.
‘I had this sense that I loved this guy and was going to make a series of films with him – and then I received [the] phone call.’
Stephen mentioned that he chose to ‘pause’ his work on the Blink project, which had been in development for years, following Heath’s death.
He explained that although he had initially considered Leonardo DiCaprio for the lead role, after meeting Heath, he could not envision anyone else in the role.
Stephen is renowned for his contributions to the 2020 film Dolittle, 2016’s Gold, and 2005’s Syriana, as well as for penning the screenplay for Steven Soderbergh’s Traffic.
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