Heath Ledger's Friend Reveals What Really Made the Actor Snap
Almost a year and a half after his death, new details are emerging about Heath Ledger's death and his personal life, including his failed relationship with Michelle Williams.
Cinematographer Nicola Pecorini, who worked with Heath on his last film, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, tells Vanity Fair in the August issue that the actor "used to smoke marijuana on a regular basis, like probably 50 percent of Americans." However, when it started to become a problem, he “went clean as a whistle.” Heath's vocal coach Gerry Grennell told the mag that Heath even stopped drinking: “Heath would happily go to the bar, buy a round of drinks for friends, and come back and have a soda or juice, never once drinking alcohol.”
The friends and coworkers interviewed in the article blame insomnia for his sudden death -- from a accidental overdose of prescription drugs -- on Jan. 22, 2008 at the age of 28. “Everyone has a different view of how he passed away,” Grennell tells the magazine. “From my perspective, and knowing him as well as I did, and being around him as much as I was, it was a combination of exhaustion, sleeping medication … and perhaps the aftereffects of the flu. I guess his body just stopped breathing.”
The article also dishes on Heath's highly publicized relationship with his Brokeback Mountain costar, with whom he has a daughter Matilda, 3. It reveals that the couple's relationship started to fall apart during the Oscar campaign for Brokeback in 2006 and when they finally split in summer 2007, Heath gave Michelle their Brooklyn, NY brownstone — as well as anything else she wanted.
"Heath was always blaming himself [about the relationship], asking, What did I do wrong? Because he's a much nicer person than I am, he really thought he could do the right thing," said Heath's Imaginarium director, friend and mentor Terry Gilliam. "He was trying to be decent and graceful, give her whatever she wanted — the house, every f--king thing. But once it started going south, it went very quickly."
When Heath and Michelle started dealing with lawyers and custody issues, that's what "really made Heath snap," said Gilliam. "He said, 'Just f--k all of you! I'm not giving Michelle anything.’" Added another unnamed source, when it came to Matilda, "there were definitely heated conversations, and emotions were high."
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READERS COMMENTS:
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I think Heath was an amazing actor and should be left to REST IN PEACE. He should be honored and remembered for all of his accomplishments rather than being trash talked, it's not like he's here to defend himself.
<33 R.I.P & GOD BLESS <33 -- _**R.I.P Heath**_::Ashley::
To bring up this crap is ridiculous. Leave it alone.
-- Hannnah
my god, we're still talking about this? The guy is dead (RIP HEATH) so leave it alone. I don't understand why people continue to dig up crap on a guy who isn't even with us anymore? Don't people have anything better to do than to trash talk the dead?
-- Utterly Disgusted
i feel sorry for the family beacuse they just wont drop it and let him rip
-- erin illinois
i feel sorry for mitilda
-- Anonymous
a great actor leave it alone
-- kk
Leave Heath Alone!!!
-- FanOfHeathLedger
I think he should stay out of it and move on and quit bringing out the past
-- Joro
Sometimes people are viewed differently when you are high than when you are sober! I was young and silly but sober when I met my first love. The funny thing is rather you are sober or not love is still love.
-- TizzySurffs
gilliam doesn't need to promote his career. monty python fame will keep him afloat for a long time.
-- Anonymous |
