The Dark Knight "Heath Ledger tried to sabotoge his performance"

[matrix_ghost]

I'm gonna take the risk and play Devil's Advocate, but with certainly no disrespect to Heath or anyone else here. I can certainly see where it's possible. I mean first off why would his friend/agent lie? Secondly, we all know Heath tore down his career to start anew, and lastly we all know how invasive the media had been in his life. So why not work extremely hard to gain the opposite effect from the studio, so that he could have some time off, take a much needed break, and spend time with his daughter whom he loved so much.

No one really knows how truly annoying it can be when you are forced to live your life in the public eye just because you are passionate about your career. It's one of the biggest disadvantages of this business and he was feeling it full force.

There are several interviews out there where he comments, not joking, about how he hates this side of the industry, and for this reason wishes to never work again.

One other important thing to remember is that Alexander never said Heath disliked or didn't care about TDK. He said Heath was hesitant about the aftermath of being in a blockbuster film, ie: the merchandise, the attention, and the possibility of being labeled so not as many diverse roles would come his way.

The direct quote from the article is as follows:

Ledger’s friend and agent, Steven Alexander, tells Biskind that Heath “was always hesitant to be in a summer blockbuster, with the dolls and action figures and everything else that comes with one of those movies. He was afraid it would define him and limit his choices.”

“He was ready to bust out of the gate, but he didn’t want to step on the gas and become something that he didn’t want to become: a matinee idol,” says Alexander. “He was a private person, and he didn’t want to share his personal history with the press. It just wasn’t up for sale."

So, hopefully that will clear up any misunderstanding people are thinking. Granted everyone is entitled to their opinion, but I think it's important to remember what was said clearly and not misconstrue what was said.

I can see what Heath was fearing. Look at bale. BEfore The Dark KNight , the guy could enjoy his life low-profile life. But the moment the media started to see that the became a big name star , they could focus on the negative things in his life ... it just went overboard.
The rant ending up on the street , the problems with his mom & sister , some guy who said that ever since Bale made it back he wasn't talking to him anymore. And the media loves these things. To this day Bale in constantly trying to ask the media not to ask questions about his personal life.

AS for heath ... wouldn't go so far as to say that Heath woudn't be able to get the roles he wanted. It obviously didn't stop Bale. Aside from Termiantor:Salvation , his role in Public Enemies and yes even The Fighter is a supporting role.
It's up to the actor to decide what kind of roles he wants and doesn't want.
Ít is true that you can definately become more expensive for indie productions because with usually with a succesful movie comes a salary increase for future projects. As for LEdger worryinng that this role would define him forever....before the dark knight there was another movie that "defined " him. Brokeback Mountain.

 

[MiniBond]

IMO the only potentially credible thing here is the fact that Ledger accepted the role to escape from a complicated family life.......but a feeling of freedom like this could also have helped him to get deeper into his character !

 

[Anubis]

If it's true, then Ledger f**ked up at f**king up. Wow.....that's f**ked up.

 

[Pennyworth]

Quite frankly I don't care why he took the job. That's not my concern.

I'm just thankful he delivered a great performance regardless of his motives.

yep...enough said.

 

[TheVileOne]

He's playing the Joker, how is playing it to the extreme going to get him fired? Its not like Ledger was playing Spider-man.

 

[EHTNAMTAB]

How can anyone here say it is not true? I can't.

 

[ultimatefan]

Sounds like the agent may have some kind of grudge and is taking advantage that Ledger can no longer defend himself.

Ledger clearly worked hard as hell in his performance. His Joker was far out, but that´s what Nolan wanted. He was getting raves for it before he even died. If he wanted to get fired, he just had to slack off or tell Nolan to f*** off. It´s ridiculous to suggest he didn´t care for the role.

 

[weezerspider]

How can anyone here say it is not true? I can't.

Have You Seen TDK? I'm sorry to all the Heath Lovers, but NO ONE, not even Heath, Can have that great of a performance when not giving a rat's ass about it. He clearly cared, just by watching the movie.

 

[The Joker]

Have You Seen TDK? I'm sorry to all the Heath Lovers, but NO ONE, not even Heath, Can have that great of a performance when not giving a rat's ass about it. He clearly cared, just by watching the movie.

Of course he did.

He even said himself in interviews that it was the most fun he's ever had, and probably ever will have with a role. Heck, he locked himself up in a hotel room for a month with a stack of Joker comics, and perfected a Joker voice, posture, laugh etc.

 

[isi123]

This is a load of BS guys, it's even said on Batman-On-Film (BOF)

http://www.batman-on-film.com/batmovienews.html

Media makes up crap because it sells. Heath's performance and death was a big thing, so now they try twisting stuff and making new stories to bring the buzz back up, so us (the fans) want to find out more which makes the media money, etc etc.

Sorry if i'm abit confusing. But i'm sure some of you get me.

 

[ChrisB]

This is a load of BS guys, it's even said on Batman-On-Film (BOF)

http://www.batman-on-film.com/batmovienews.html

OMG its on BOF it HAS to be true!

 

[Dirt Like Me]

Maybe Ledger simply commented that the 'pay or play' clause gave him the freedom to give a performance that would either be amazing or get him fired (and paid).

Either way, this whole thing seems dumb. I'm with Boom, I don't care why he took the role but I'm glad he did.

 

[ChrisB]

If it's true, then Ledger f**ked up at f**king up. Wow.....that's f**ked up.

lmao nicely said. Fission Mailed Ledger!

 

[Ibn]

Quite frankly I don't care why he took the job. That's not my concern.

I'm just thankful he delivered a great performance regardless of his motives.

^^^^^

 

[Killer Queen77]

If it's true, then Ledger f**ked up at f**king up. Wow.....that's f**ked up.

I like this quote.

Don't believe that story for a second. Heath's not here to defend himself, anyone can say anything about him, even his so-called friends. He clearly cared about his performance and he was very proud of what he did.

 

[tdkfan626]

I think Heath really enjoy making The Dark Knight. He made friends with the crew and spent time with them. He also hung out on the set on his days off. These are not the actions of a guy who would rather be on vacation, imo.

As far as how much he cared about his performance, how about that story of how he asked everyone to stay late when he was filming the Why So Serious scene so he could get it just right. Even his family have said that he was proud of what he did as The Joker.

 

[CJ]

I know my opinion may seem a little biased, coming from a Batman fan on a Batman message board, but this article is total BS.

If LEdger didn't care about the character, then why did he lock himself in a hotel room for a month, studying the character's psyche and coming up with a voice and mannerisms?

Also, Ledger said in an interview shortly before he died, that the Joker is one of his favorite roles.

 

[redfirebird2008]

Have You Seen TDK? I'm sorry to all the Heath Lovers, but NO ONE, not even Heath, Can have that great of a performance when not giving a rat's ass about it. He clearly cared, just by watching the movie.

If he didn't care, he wouldn't have bothered writing that "Joker Journal" before production on the film began. He also wouldn't have locked himself into a hotel room practicing the voice, posture, walk, mannerisms, etc. if he didn't give a rat's ass.

 

[Octoberist]

I think it would be irresponsible for anyone to actually sabotage a performance in a movie. I just think it would be immature and disrespectful to Nolan - or any director for that matter - and I don't think a dude like Ledger was serious about it.

Seriously, if Ledger talk to his 'friend' about it, it was between him and the friend; a private matter. I don't think Ledger was actually gonna screw his career up and obviously, he cared about the role from his prep, etc. Either way, it's irrelevant because Ledger did a wonderful job .

 

[Bats]

Oh this is such huge bs! Why would ANY actor try to sabotage a performance? Especially for a lengthy vacation??

Not only could they be blacklisted in Hollywood for crummy or no work, but he/she could take a vacation anyway!

And to put such work into a sabotaged(sp?) role??

Man, I'll believe in the Easter Bunny before this.

 

[JokerInc.]

just take a look at this interview, the man surely love his work!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9iPI_NoqHyk&feature=related

 

[Jokers_Wild]

Well, I know from the few, rare interviews Heath gave while finishing TDK he absolutely loved playing the Joker. I think he said it was the most fun he had with a role.

Ledger took his work too seriously as an actor to join a project he didn't really believe in or care about...also, Nolan would never have worked with and hired someone who wasn't geniuine about the role.

Almost a year after the film, and then this article. Anything for readership I suppose...

 

[spittingvenom]

If he didn't care, he wouldn't have bothered writing that "Joker Journal" before production on the film began. He also wouldn't have locked himself into a hotel room practicing the voice, posture, walk, mannerisms, etc. if he didn't give a rat's ass.

Exactly. There is no way a person would invest so much in something like that to just **** off one day and be like "well, i actually want a vacation. **** that month i just spent in a hotel room shut away from society perfecting how i will play the role."

its just ridiculous to even consider.

not to mention i think that ledger was a phenominal actor, which was evident even before TDK. i don't see why he would risk that reputation.

 

[Polux]

Ok, my two cents....I think the article itself is taking it outta context; a couple of months ago (on Ledger´s death anniversary) there was this very extensive interview with several friends of him including Terry Gilliam, Wes Bently and these two guys; when Ledger showed the Joker make up (wich he designed himself) for the first time to his agent, he said "Man, that´s too much ! They´re gonna fire you !!" and Heath said "Maybe, but that´s the only way I can play the part..."; the thing is, Heath and Nolan wanted to push things, and Heath knew he could upset the studio, but (as his agent said in that very same interview) Heath knew this was a chance for him to be in a big blockbuster "under his own terms"; so he pushed to play the character his way while being respectfull to the character, even knowing that this could cause the studio to get pissed and fire him, but in the end it payed off nicely.


Polux

 

[Caped Crusader]

If Heath tried to sabotage his performance it definitely showed.