The Film Industry Pays Tribute To Heath Ledger On The 10th Anniversary Of His Death

It’s been 10 whole years since the tragic, untimely death of Heath Ledger and still, his immense performance in The Dark Knight continues to be a source of inspiration and awe.

On January 22nd, 2008, Ledger died due to a cardiac arrest brought on by a drug overdose. He was only 28 years old at the time of the incident, which left the entire entertainment industry in mourning at the loss of such a great, raw talent. If there’s one small solace to take away from Heath Ledger’s all-too-brief time on this Earth, though, it’s that he saved his best performance for last, and that’s something the Internet has honored on the 10th anniversary of his untimely death.

Here’s a small sample of the industry’s reactions, beginning with a piece from People that features an interview with his surviving sister, Kate Ledger:

Heath is hugely important in the lives of my children. There’s not a day that goes by that we don’t share stories or talk about him. He is very much alive in our house.

It’s been a full decade and still, the fact that we’ll never see another Heath Ledger performance is enough to bring a tear to the eye. Here’s a round-up of those tributes, beginning with a Tweet that sums up today’s anniversary quite perfectly: “10 years ago today, we lost one of the most talented actors of our generation.” And we couldn’t agree more.

And just as Carrie Fisher was and forever will be Princess Leia, Heath Ledger will always be the Clown Prince of Crime. Because in The Dark Knight, the late, great actor delivered a tour-de-force performance that transcended the silver screen to become something more – something immortal. And that’s exactly what he achieved with his pitch-perfect Batman role, even if he didn’t know it at the time.

So here’s to you, Heath Ledger – the best comic book villain ever to grace the silver screen.