Heath Ledger died tragically on January 22, 2008 and while many mourned The Dark Knight as his last and final work they were mistaken. This Christmas Heath Ledgers final performance will be released to the public in The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.
The movie is a fantastical tale of Dr. Parnassus and his traveling show the ‘Imaginarium’ as they reap the rewards of dealing with the devil. Dr. Parnassus has the gift of guiding the imaginations of others but is burdened by a dark secret, long ago he made a bet with the devil and won immortality in exchange for his first born child being taken away at the age of 16. In an effort to save his daughter Dr. Parnassus strike up one last wager, the first to collect five souls gets to keep Dr. Parnassus’s daughter Valentina. Heath Ledger played Tony, the con artist enlisted to help the Dr. win the bet and save Valentina.
However, due to Ledger’s untimely death he was only able to complete two thirds of the filming for the movie. Due to the tragedy production came to a screeching halt. But in an effort to restore the movie, star studded actors Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell offered to finish for the late Ledger. Each would go on to play the character Tony as he entered different phases of imagination within the movie. Many were skeptical as to how the transformations would occur but according to director Terry Gilliam “As a result of their involvement, the film is even more special, more surprising and it's become funnier."
The film has already been nominated for several awards including Best Achievement In Production at the British Independent Film Awards, and four International Press Academy Satellite Awards in the best visual effects, best art direction & production design, best costume design, and best original song categories.