Actor Heath Ledger
was found dead at a Manhattan apartment Tuesday afternoon in what
appeared to be a possible drug-related death; he was 28. The actor was
discovered in one of the SoHo apartment's bedrooms at 3:31 p.m., when a
masseuse arrived for a scheduled appointment and the residence's
housekeeper went to inform the actor of the masseuse's arrival. He was
found unconscious and unresponsive; the New York Times stated that the
apartment in question belonged to actress Mary-Kate Olsen,
who was not present and was believed to be out of state. An initial
police report also cited by the New York Times said that foul play was
not suspected and that pills had been found near Ledger's body. A
native of Australia, Ledger shot to fame as a teen heartthrob in 10 Things I Hate About You before graduating to more adult roles, most notably his Oscar-nominated turn in Brokeback Mountain. Engaged at one time to Brokeback co-star Michelle Williams, the two had a daughter but had split in recent months. Earlier this year, Ledger wrapped filming on the Batman film The Dark Knight,
in which he played The Joker; the film is currently set for release
this summer. Further details of the actor's death were not available at
press time. --IMDb staff

Holy crap!  This sadly makes me interested in The Dark Knight because I have heard how this new Joker role was so demanding and Ledger played the role so demented.