Actor Heath Ledger found dead in a Manhattan apartment

And in an interview with Wild About Movies Ledger said, “There were so many actors during the past seven years who have been attached to ‘Brokeback Mountain,’ yet who have been convinced by their managers, agents, publicists, or all three combined, not to do it, because it would ruin their career. I was approached to make the movie, maybe because I was the last on the list, in early 2004 and didn’t think twice about it. The same can be said about Jake (Gyllenhaal). Neither of us needed to have ‘permission’ from our agents to make this movie. It was our decision alone.”

It was that nonchalant attitude toward playing a gay character that endeared the actor to much of the gay community. Although many fans don’t realize it, Brokeback Mountain wasn’t the first time Ledger played gay. In 1996 he starred in the Australian drama series Sweat as a gay cyclist.

Ledger brought something personal to his role as Ennis. After the movie came out, he revealed that he had an uncle who is gay and their relationship informed his performance. His uncle, Neil Bell, had been kicked out of his home in Perth by his father who told Bell to “Go to the hospital and get fixed or you’re not coming back to this family.” Ledger said his uncle was the most masculine person he knew and provided a good example of how masculine gay men can be. Ledger felt that it was important for Ennis to share that trait as well.

Some controversy did attach itself to Ledger in regards to playing Ennis. At the 2005 Screen Actors Guild Awards, Ledger giggled while announcing Brokeback Mountain as a nominee in the category for Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. Some thought he was mocking his role, but Ledger explained he was suffering from stage fright. He later apologized.

And gay fans were delighted when Ledger and Jake Gyllenhall, who played Jack Twist, were awarded "Best Kiss" for their kiss from the film at the MTV Movie Awards. Ledger most recently starred in Candy as a drug-addicted poet and I’m Not There, as one of several "versions" of musician Bob Dylan. When he died Ledger was only a few months from the release of the biggest film role of his career, that of The Joker in the upcoming Batman film The Dark Knight.