His role as The Joker in The Dark Knight was praised by film critics the world over, and his subsequent death in January, 2008 left friends and fans feeling shaken.
But now the New York Post has revealed a fascinating new detail about the aftermath of Heath Ledger’s tragic passing.
According to the publication, police investigators who responded to the actor’s Manhattan apartment after his drug overdose allegedly found that his loft was turned into a shrine to the Joker – complete with Batman comic books, research on the origin of the joker and clowns, small clown statues and recordings of Ledger practising his own version of the Joker’s voice.
A source speaking to Post‘s Page Six column claims the Oscar-winning actor had truly immersed himself into the part.
“He was studying up on the origins of clowns and all of the previous Jokers like Jack Nicholson’s character and Cesar Romero’s, who was the first Joker on TV,” the insider said.
“He was trying to make his role different from the roles of the other actors. He was even studying how to make his voice different from theirs.”
WATCH: Heath Ledger’s haunting performance as The Joker. Post continues…
It was also reported that his apartment was “immaculately clean” with his research on the troubled character organised in a very systematic way.
“He was a perfectionist who clearly had a lot of respect for the character. All of that stuff was very tidy. He cared a lot about it,” the source added.
Heath had recently split from Michelle Williams, with whom he had a daughter, Matilda.
Ledger was discovered dead in his apartment aged 28.
According to a report by the New York City medical examiner’s office, his official death was from an accidental overdose of six different types of prescription medications.
“We have concluded that the manner of death is accident, resulting from the abuse of prescription medications,” the report said.
WATCH: Jake Gyllenhaal opens up about Heath’s death. Post continues…
Despite his fascination with the Joker, many have claimed that the role was the catalyst for him slipping into a depression.
In an interview with Empire magazine before his death, the father-of-one said he locked himself away in a London hotel room for about a month to write a diary as the Joker.
After his death, the journal was found, and on one of the last pages was an ominous “bye bye” scrawling. The book also included creepy photos, comic strips, drawings of the villain – as well as illustrations of clowns and hyenas.
Ledger’s role as the Joker is considered by many critics to be the best iteration of the villain, and also Ledger’s finest work. The role saw posthumously win the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
