Heath Ledger: What Could Have Been

        So I was recently watching my favorite film of all-time (The Dark Knight) and I caught myself thinking, what could have been. No I wasn't thinking how much cooler Batman can be or what needed to happen to make the film even greater than it already is, instead I was thinking what Heath Ledger (who played The Joker) could've become if he was still with us today. For those of you that don't know Ledger passed away in January 2008 of a drug overdose, so its been a little over 5 and half years since he passed away. He didn't get to see one of his two final performances which most call his performance as The Joker (including myself) one of the most sadistic, chilling, haunting and dark performances ever in film history and it was a role that would have launched him into stardom. The other film that he happened to be working on at the time of his death is a small film entitled The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus. The film used Ledgers friend's Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Ferrell to finish Ledger's scenes.

       With all of that being said Ledger was on top of the world at the time of his death having come off being nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor in the film Brokeback Mountain and having a chance to play the greatest comic book villain of all-time (also winning an Academy Award).  I want to to take a look at what films I could see Heath Ledger being in had he not passed away (sort of like an alternate reality). I'm going to list at least two films in each year from 2009 to 2013 and give reasons why. Why 2009 you may ask, well he would've finished filming The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus in March of 2008(in actuality the film took almost two years to complete due to Ledger's Death and the release date was pushed from December 2008 to December 2009), so he would have to begin work on a film within a couple of months for it to come out in 2009.

2009
Sherlock Holmes 


        Guy Ritchie (director of the film) initially wanted a younger actor to play Sherlock Holmes and making it feel like a Batman Begins. Ledger would've been 28 at the start of filming, he would playing alongside his friend Jude Law and the film would have had an Aussie play Sherlock instead of an American. This would also mean he would be in the sequel as well.

The Lovely Bones


       Before the filming of The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus began (December 2007) Ledger could have be mostly done with this film which began filming in October 2007. Most of the scenes were shot in New Zealand (the neighboring country to Ledger's home country of Australia) and plus he could have got to work with Peter Jackson (director of The Lord of The Rings and The Hobbit Trilogies). Ledger in my mind would have replaced Mark Wahlberg.

2010
Blue Valentine 


        This one is pretty obvious. Michelle Williams (who was actually in the film) and Heath Ledger were in a relationship together they even have a daughter, so the on-screen chemistry would have been awesome.

Inception


        The reason why I say Inception is simply because of Christopher Nolan, Nolan tends to use actors over and over again, for example Tom Hardy Joseph Gordan Levitt Cillian Murphy and Marion Cotillard were all in The Dark Knight Rises (as Bane, John Blake, Scarecrow/Dr. Johnathan Crane and Talia-Al-Ghul respectively) so it would be logical for Heath Ledger to be in this film. I would see him replacing Tom Hardy.

2011
The Tree of Life


        This film is simple as well. Ledger was to begin filming this as soon as filming was complete on The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus.

The Ides of March


       This film proved that Ryan Gosling could really act and hang with the big boys. The same could've been said for Ledger. I mean think about it a big time boost in his career plus getting to face Batman in a non Batman (if you don't get the joke then I have no idea what's wrong with you).

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows


        I make an exception for 2011 for the simple fact that Ledger would be obligated to do the sequel to Sherlock Holmes.

2012
The Dark Knight Rises


         This is another no brainer. If Ledger had not passed away then he was scheduled to reprise his Oscar winning role as The Joker. The film most likely would've had a small cameo by The Joker or a possible team-up with Bane.

The Raven


        After the performance Ledger gave as The Joker, there is not a doubt in my mind that he could have pulled of the role of Edgar Allen Poe (a man who is almost as sick and twisted as The Joker)

2013
The Great Gatsby


        This one is a tough call because out of the three male characters, Ledger could play any one of them. I can mostly see him replacing Tobey Maguire as Nick Caraway or Joel Edgerton as Tom Buchanan.

12 Years A Slave


        This film would have been perfect for Ledger. The film has an all-star line-up that he could fit into very well. I see him replacing either Brad Pitt or Michael Fassbender.

        So there you have it ladies and gentlemen, a look into what could've been for Heath Ledger. Heath was a great actor who had the talent and potential to become the greatest actor of all-time. May you rest in peace Heath.

                                                                                                         Jonah Sparks