Footage resurfaces of celebrities' reaction when Heath Ledger won an Oscar after he died

Resurfaced footage shows the heartbreaking reaction from the room when Heath Ledger won an Oscar after his passing.

Just over 12 months after his death, the late actor won the Best Supporting Actor award for his iconic performance as The Joker in The Dark Knight.

On 22 January 2008, Ledger died at the age of 28 after accidentally overdosing on prescription painkillers while The Dark Knight was in the final stages of production.

When he was announced as a winner at the 81st Academy Awards on 22 February 2009, the celebrities in the crowd appeared to look visibly upset.

Watch below:

Ledger's father Kim Ledger, his mother Sally Bell and older sister Kate Ledger went up on stage to collect the award on the Brokeback Mountain star's behalf.

During the acceptance speech, Kim said the Oscar would have been validation of his son's 'quiet determination to be truly accepted' by his fellow Hollywood stars.

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The speeches from Ledger's family members were delivered to an audience on the verge of tears as the footage of the awards ceremony shows some of the brightest lights of the movie industry overcome with emotion.

While his mother said they would be using the moment to be 'happy for what he has achieved', the room full of Hollywood's brightest lights was clearly struck by sorrow for having lost one of their own number.

The reaction of major stars like Brad Pitt, Anne Hathaway, Ben Kingsley and Kate Winslet to a much deserved award that Ledger didn't live to receive himself is truly heartbreaking.

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Kate spoke to her brother the night before he died and said they were 'laughing and joking', while she dispelled any rumours that his performance as The Joker in The Dark Knight or his preparation for the role had contributed to his death.

There had been claims that Ledger's dedication to the role, including locking himself in a hotel room for weeks and keeping a diary of his character's thoughts had contributed in some way to his death, but his sister refuted those suggestions.

She explained that he'd been 'so proud' of what he'd done on the movie and was looking forward to appearing in another as he'd 'had the best time ever' working on the film.

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She said: "He loved working with Chris Nolan and Christian Bale and Gary Oldman.

"When he came home at Christmas, he couldn't wait to tell us all about it, and he was doing the voice and laughing, showing me all the rushes. We had a great time."

For many fans, he's the greatest actor to play The Joker of all time and his performance in The Dark Knight will live forever in memory - even if it's such a shame that he never got to hold the Oscar he earned.