Johnny Depp has revealed that he donated his entire income from the 2009 movie The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus to Heath Ledger’s daughter.
Depp appeared in the blockbuster alongside Ledger, in what turned out to be the The Dark Knight star’s last acting role before he passed away in January 2008.
Following the completion of the film, Depp pledged his entire fee to his co-star’s daughter Matilda to help support her following her father’s untimely passing.
The Pirates of the Caribbean icon was amongst a group of actors who stepped in to revive Terry Gilliam’s film after the tragic loss of Ledger.
Colin Farrell and Jude Law also joined the cast and pledged the money generated from the film to the then two year old girl.
Many reports at the time suggested that Ledger had failed to update his will to include his daughter because of the unexpected nature of his passing, so the gesture by these three Hollywood stars helped to ease some of the pressure on Matilda’s mother Michelle Williams.
In an interview shortly after Ledger’s death, Depp described him as a “thundering and ungovernable” talent and “the only player out there breathing heavy down the back of every established actor’s neck”.
Depp’s generosity has gone under the radar for many years, but following his defamation trial with ex-partner Amber Heard in 2022 and his subsequent donation of his entire $1 million settlement to charity, a lot more of his past open-handedness came to the fore.
In 2005, Depp also spent $3M to fund the funeral of Hunter S Thompson, his friend and character study for ‘Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.’
Following Thompson’s death by suicide, Depp made sure his ashes were fired from a giant cannon.
Ledger was 28 when he died from an apparent accidental drug overdose. Matilda Ledger is now 18 years old and still lives in Brooklyn with her mother.
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