When he took to the stage to collect the award, Christopher looked visibly moved and started by acknowledging that it wasn’t the first time he’d been in that position.
“The only time I’ve ever been on this stage before was accepting one of these on behalf of our dear friend, Heath Ledger,” he began.
As I’m sure you know, Heath received widespread critical acclaim for his iconic portrayal of the Joker in Christopher’s The Dark Knight back in 2008. Tragically, he died from an accidental overdose of prescription drugs in January 2008, ahead of the film’s release in July.
And being that he wasn’t there to accept the award himself, the film’s director was sent to receive the trophy on his behalf.
Reflecting on the moving moment while collecting his own award more than 15 years on, Christopher recalled that accepting the Golden Globe for Heath was “complicated and challenging” — but credited Robert Downey Jr. for helping him through it.
“In the middle of speaking, I looked down at Robert Downey Jr., [who] caught my eye and gave me a look of support,” he said of the 2009 ceremony, where Robert was up for the same award as Heath.
“The same look [he’s] giving me now — the same love and support he showed so many people in your community over the years,” the director added, showing some love for his Oppenheimer star, who beamed up at him from the audience.
Like Christopher, Robert also won big for his role in Oppenheimer during last night’s ceremony, being crowned Best Supporting Actor — the very same award that Heath received for The Dark Knight 15 years earlier.
In his speech for Heath during the 2009 Golden Globes ceremony, Christopher said that the Australian actor’s sudden death “saw a hole ripped in the future of cinema.”
“But with the extraordinary response to his work,” the director continued, “I, for one, start to be able to look a bit less at that gap in the future, and a little bit more at the incredible place in the history of cinema that he built for himself with his talent and with his dedication to his artistry.”
