Cast your mind back 18 years to 1999 – that’s when teen film 10 Things I Hate About You hit our screens.
The 18-year milestone prompted actress Julia Stiles to reflect on her time with a then young and bright-eyed Heath Ledger.
“It was a special time,” Julia, 36, who is currently starring in SBS drama Riviera, tells TV WEEK.
“Making that movie, we were all so innocent and open-minded and open-hearted – not guarded or self-conscious. It made it more special and memorable.”
In January, it will be 10 years since Heath died, aged 28, from an accidental overdose of prescription drugs in his New York apartment.
The world lost a great talent, one Julia says she recognised the moment she met him.
“He just had this sort of energy that pulled you in,” she explains.
“He was one of those people who was so present in life that you naturally gravitated towards them.
“He was very fun to be around − and very, very charming.”
Julia is currently starring the in the SBS series Riviera.
But it’s not just Heath who’s on the list of Aussies Julia has worked with.
In Riviera, the actress stars opposite Anthony LaPaglia.
Thanks to Anthony moving to the US in 1982, Julia says he’s lost some of his native accent.
“On set, he swings between a hybrid of British, Australian and American,” she says.
