When the news broke in 2008 that Heath Ledger had died, it left the entire entertainment world thunderstruck. At the age of 28, Ledger was still really only just at the start of his professional acting career, but he had quickly made a name for himself as a captivating performer and was on the verge of superstar status. Even though that was almost 20 years ago, it’s still shocking for fans to reckon with, and it’s even harder for those who were closer to and worked with him.
Paul Bettany is one of those people, having co-starred with Ledger in the 2001 period film A Knight’s Tale, and he reflected on his relationship with the actor in a 25th anniversary piece about the film published by The Guardian. The two actors worked extensively together in the making of the movie, Ledger as aspiring jousting champion William Thatcher and Bettany as his hype man Geoffrey Chaucer, and the latter can still recall the special energy that the Australian star possessed (even though he can’t actually rewatch the movie):
