Influenced by this thread: http://forum.dvdtalk.com/movie-talk/...view-film.html


I would really, really, really like to think he would have, but I can't help but think his death played a heavy role in the voting process. Wondering what you guys think. I still believe he would have been nominated, but winning is something else.

nope.

I doubt he would have won either, but who knows. The Best Supporting Actor category wasn't exactly a heated battle that year.

Not that he wasn't great in it but I think the fervor caused by his untimely death was a major factor in his victory.

I think he still would have had a really great chance simply because the role was so different from anything he had done.

yep.

edit: now, i am not so sure...

Who was he facing in that category?

Josh Brolin (Milk)
Robert Downey, Jr. (Tropic Thunder)
Philip Seymour Hoffman (Doubt)
Michael Shannon (Revolutionary Road)

I feel almost certainly that Ledger would have lost to either Shannon or Hoffman had he still been alive. Heck, I feel almost as sure he wouldn't have been nominated if he were still alive. Not that it wasn't a great performance - but, remember, TDK didn't get many other nods that year in the major categories - I think Cinematography was the second-biggest nomination it got after Ledger's.

I don't think he would have been nominated at all. Each of the four people that he was up against deserved it more. I would have voted for Josh Brolin.

I think he still would have won, his performance was still excellent.

My hatred of the Nolan Batman films is well known but I did like Ledger's The Joker. But it was still nothing ground breaking and certainly not the greatest performance of all time as some believe. I still think Nicholson's Joker is better, hell even Mark Hamill does a better job as a voice actor, IMO. Also as far as crazed out there, demented performances or just being a great villian it doesn't even compare to Robert Deniro in Taxi Driver, Nicholson in The Shining or Cuckoo's Nest, Anthony Hopkins in Silence Of The Lambs or even Alan Richman in Die Hard.

Nicholson had the look but let's be honest he didn't do much acting. He played himself dressed as The Joker. I like Batman but have always thought people overrate Nicholson's performance.

As for Ledger winning it probably wouldn't have happened had he lived and I'm a Nolan Batman fanboy who loved his performance. People latch on to certain figures who die young and that definitely benefited The Dark Knight. It also helped that the film was good but Ledger's death in my mind undoubtedly is a big reason why the mainstream audience became so infatuated with the film.

Honestly he didn't play a live action version of the character but Hammil is The Joker to me. His voice was just so definitive and was the perfect mix of crazy/insane yet funny plus that awesome maniacal laugh. Just so well acted not to mention the design of the character was great. Batman: The Animated Series is really tough to beat in most regards if you ask me as it was just so damn well done.

It depends on what "if he had lived" means:

If he had not OD'd at all and just continued living as normal then he would not have been nominated.

If he had OD'd and suffered severe permanent brain damage then he likely would have still received the pity award.

He doesn't win without dying. The Oscar voters don't like awarding prizes to commercial projects like superhero films. Most Oscar voters aren't lining up on opening weekend to see the latest Marvel or DC movie.

Brokeback Mountain + dying = AA.

He was voted on by his peers, and he had engendered a lot of goodwill in the industry with a sympathetic performance in a gay exploration role/movie. It wasn't that long ago when conventional leading men would have steered as far away from something like that as possible. That gave him a ton of brownie points already.
At some point in his career, had he lived, his number for the AA would have likely come up. Dying at the height of his popularity just sealed the deal. Otherwise I doubt he would have even been nominated.

Did he deserve it? How many AA winners actually do?

Robert Downey Jr. was nominated for Tropic Thunder?! Then yes, Ledger should have been nominated and won. To compare his performance to other Joker performances and then say "it was nothing like them" is good reason. He took the role, made it his own, and truly inhabited the character.

(No, I haven't paid attention to the Oscars in over a decade. Crash is the last Best Picture winner I can name, and I still haven't watched it.)

I thought Ledger was great in TDK but some of those other performances were also great.
If I had to pick the best one it would be PSH in Doubt.

Had he lived I doubt Ledger would have even been offered the role!

I thought he was great in it, but I'm not being honest with myself if I didn't think his death didn't at least impact some of the votes.

It was a good performance and I think he would've been nominated anyway.

However, I think the junkie's death put him over the top in votes to win it - which probably would've gone to Philip Seymour Hoffman, coincidentally another junkie who died.

Ironically, PSH will probably get a nomination this year for "A Most Wanted Man" and his death may put him over the top in winning an Oscar - screwing over someone else who may be more deserving.

Yes. Supporting Actor awards generally go to "made the movie" actors, TDK was a massive success and the movie would have been nothing without Ledger's performance. To note, I didn't find PSH's performance in Doubt all that memorable or interesting. Michael Shannon was probably the biggest competition.

Also, where did anybody get the association of junkie for Ledger from exactly? Death from overlapping prescription drugs while sick isn't exactly uncommon, especially when lack of sleep is involved. I'd be hesitant to consider all of them junkies. It's a far cry from PSH dying from a heroin overdose.

Yes. While he won the Academy Award, he lost the game of life. Oscar statue for mum and da = little consolation. I wish I knew how to quit you.

While "junkie" may not be the best term to describe him... "druggie" maybe? He abused pills... some of which weren't even prescribed to him. He was known for doing other drugs as well. This whole "accident" thing is publicity to make him look like an innocent victim. The man liked drugs and died from it.

I can't possibly answer the question, because Oscar results are often a mystery to me. The politics and sentiments involved seem to go way beyond objective assessment of craft, but I'm not an actor so what do I know?

Regardless, Ledger's performance as the Joker was outstanding and the best of his career. It's not "the best performance of all time in any movie" but it clearly elevated The Dark Knight to another cinematic level, independent of his death. People tend to forget now how controversial a casting choice Ledger was at the time. The Joker was so far removed from Ledger's "type" up to that point and he completely inhabited the role and brought the character to life in unexpected ways. It's easy to forget that now that it's considered his career-defining role.