<P> Ledger died on 22 January 2008 from an accidental intoxication from prescription drugs . A few months before his death , Ledger had finished filming his performance as The Joker in The Dark Knight . His death occurred during editing of The Dark Knight and in the midst of filming his last role as Tony in The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus . His untimely death cast a shadow over the subsequent promotion of the $185 million Batman production . Ledger received numerous posthumous accolades for his critically acclaimed performance in the film , including the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor , a Best Actor International Award at the 2008 Australian Film Institute Awards ( for which he became the first actor to win an award posthumously ) , the 2008 Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor , the 2009 Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor -- Motion Picture , and the 2009 BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actor . </P>
who plays joker in batman the dark knight
Ledger