The late Heath Ledger won an Oscar for playing the Joker in "The Dark Knight" for good reason. His committed performance brought the iconic comic book to character to life in the most terrifying way imaginable.
Advertisement
Ledger passed away in January 2008, unfortunately unable to see the remarkable impact his performance had.
A clip from the documentary "Too Young to Die" has surfaced, and it gives a brief glimpse into Ledger's method for immersing himself in the Joker's madness.
This clip reveals the diary Ledger kept as he prepared for the role, which Ledger's father Kim looks through. To prepare to play Batman's greatest foe, Ledger locked himself up in a hotel room and then in his apartment for around a month.
The diary says a lot about both how Ledger felt during those days, as well as his many influences for the part.
Advertisement
In the notebook, an image of a hyena is visible:
Perhaps this inspired his laugh, which often has a hyena-like quality to it:
Related stories
The notebook is filled with dialogue from the film that Ledger jotted down. He even wrote down all of his dialogue for the entire hospital room scene:
In this scene, Ledger memorably wears a nurse's outfit. In this clip, Kim notes that Heath's sister Kate used to dress him up in a nurse's outfit.
Advertisement
In the notebook, you might notice one figure that constantly pops up:
You can see it again on another page:
That is none other than Alex DeLarge (Malcolm McDowell) of Stanley Kubrick's masterpiece "A Clockwork Orange" from 1971.
In "A Clockwork Orange," Alex DeLarge is the leader of a gang that inflicts random horrible acts on unsuspecting citizens. Alex rapes, steals, and fights others for the fun of it. He sure does sound a lot like the Joker, a villain who simply wants "to watch the world burn."
Advertisement
Ledger was even able to flawlessly replicate that terrifying expression, often called the "Kubrick Stare."
Watch the full clip below:
Read next
NEW LOOK
Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. Read preview
Thanks for signing up!
Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go.
Watch: Here's the new 'Batman v Superman' trailer that just got a standing ovation at Comic-Con