Heath Ledger was working on the film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus in the UK right before his untimely death. One of Heath’s co-stars in the film, Christopher Plummer, has revealed that the director, Terry Gilliam, plans to use computer generated imagery to produce the scenes that Heath had not yet filmed. Plummer, who plays Dr. Parnassus in the movie, also revealed that Heath was ill on set, that he was taking antibiotics and pills to sleep, and that he often talked about how he had trouble sleeping. It sounds like their filming schedule was grueling as Plummer says “We had to shoot every second we were out there”:

Director Terry Gilliam is trying to “salvage” The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus which Ledger was in the middle of shooting before his shocking death.

Gilliam’s close friend Christopher Plummer, who stars as title character Dr. Parnassus in the movie, said: “Terry’s throwing himself into the job of trying to salvage the picture. He’s terribly saddened by what happened, and is trying to work out how to continue. He wants to dedicate it to Heath.

“Fortunately, because the film deals with magic, there is a way of turning Heath into other people, and then use stills and computer generated imagery (CGI).”

Veteran actor Plummer also revealed Ledger was ill while on location in London for the project.

He added: “We all caught colds because we were shooting outside on horrible, damp nights. But Heath’s went on and I don’t think he dealt with it immediately, even when he was taking antibiotics. I think what he had was the walking pneumonia.

“We had to shoot every second we were out there. There was hardly any time to keep warm.

“He was saying all the time, ‘Damn it, I can’t sleep’, and he was taking all these pills to help him.”

[From News.com.au via Fark]

This reminds me of the 1993 death of The Crow star Brandon Lee, who was killed when a prop gun was accidentally loaded with a bullet on set. He died after a shot to the stomach in a scripted scene with a co-star, who of course assumed that the gun just held blanks. There were 8 days left for shooting, and a stunt double replaced Lee in some scenes in which his face was digitally added afterwards. Technology has advanced so much in 15 years and it’s sure to be an easier process with Ledger’s film.

Ledger’s ex Michelle Williams was working on Blue Valentine with Ryan Gosling in Sweden when she received the news that the father of her child had passed. Filming has been postponed to allow her time to grieve. People Magazine quotes a source as saying “We will hold off until she is ready. The production is in the process of sorting it out in respect to her.”

Celebrities and public figures who have spoken out recently about Ledger’s death include his Four Feathers co-star Wes Bentley, who it turns out shuns the spotlight even more than Ledger did. Bentley took a five year hiatus after Four Feathers and is now acting again. He even helped Heath get his role in Monster’s Ball after he backed out at the last minute and was afraid of being sued. He said:

“At one point we were as close as two people could get without being blood. That closeness came from sharing a similar, life-altering experience in life at a young age where very few could relate and those who could often were pre-occupied with competition. It would have been isolating, not to mention boring, without him…. I don’t know if I could have come back without him.”

[From People.com]

Self help guru Deepak Chopra was supposed to have dinner with Heath the day he died. He’s a friend of Shekhar Kapur, who directed Heath in The Four Feathers, and the three were scheduled to dine together that fateful night. Chopra said he spoke to Heath the day before and that he mentioned that he missed his daughter Matilda, and said he was not able to see her over the holidays. Chopra called Ledger a hard-working actor and said “He was still high from the experience [of filming in London] and he hadn’t come down … He was exhausted.”

As for whether Heath committed suicide, Chopra speculates that it’s unlikely because “He was connected to life and joy.” [Details From People.com]

Heath’s co-star in the groundbreaking film Brokeback Mountain, Jake Gyllenhaal, has yet to issue a public statement and is said to be understandably broken up about his good friend’s sudden death. People reports this the film he was working on, Brothers, is shooting around him while he takes personal leave. They also told a funny story about how Jake made a joke on set before Heath died by putting a picture of him on the wall of his prison cell before filming a harrowing scene.