In response to industry pressures, Entertainment Tonight and The Insider
have pulled a planned segment on the late Heath Ledger, according to
a spokesperson for the shows. Celebrity PR firm ID Public Relations
had released a statement on Wednesday, condemning the Paramount-produced TV
shows for planning a segment that was to feature a video of Ledger allegedly under the influence. IDPR, which has represented
Ledger, contends that ET “purchased [the two-year old video]
for a large sum of money in the hopes of stirring up a salacious and
exploitive story about Heath, which would win them big ratings on the
first day of sweeps.” Reps for ET had no further comment.
When contacted by EW.com before ET announced it
would not air the video, ID partner Mara Buxbaum explained via e-mail
that “those who knew Heath know he was a kind-hearted, immensely
talented artist, and a devoted father. He tried to live his life
quietly and with humility. Certain media outlets’ attempts to exploit
and profit from his death is shameful and in the poorest of taste. We
implore the media and the public to let this grieving family bury their
son in private and with dignity.”
In its statement, ID included the e-mail addresses and office numbers of ET
executive producer Linda Bell Blue and Paramount executive Brad Bessey
in an effort to “pressure” the shows to pull the planned segment, which
was due to air tomorrow. Although ID represents a raft of A-list
talent, including Jake Gyllenhaal, Ellen Page, and Ben Stiller, Buxbaum
would not comment on whether that pressure might have also included a
boycott of the show. —Adam B. Vary
When contacted by EW.com before ET announced itwould not air the video, ID partner Mara Buxbaum explained via e-mailthat "those who knew Heath know he was a kind-hearted, immenselytalented artist, and a devoted father. He tried to live his lifequietly and with humility. Certain media outlets’ attempts to exploitand profit from his death is shameful and in the poorest of taste. Weimplore the media and the public to let this grieving family bury theirson in private and with dignity."
In its statement, ID included the e-mail addresses and office numbers of ETexecutive producer Linda Bell Blue and Paramount executive Brad Besseyin an effort to "pressure" the shows to pull the planned segment, whichwas due to air tomorrow. Although ID represents a raft of A-listtalent, including Jake Gyllenhaal, Ellen Page, and Ben Stiller, Buxbaumwould not comment on whether that pressure might have also included aboycott of the show. —Adam B. Vary
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good!!!
The sleasefest that is ET and The Insider have gone too far. Glad someone has called them on it. Funny, I don’t remember either show ever covering Heath Ledger that much when he was alive. Both shows are grizzly profiteers. Yuck.
Excellent. Leave the man alone. His life was none of our business, and he’s not around anymore to confront these allegations, which makes all this just that much more egregious.
Thank god that common human decency won out this time. ET is the worst when it comes to shameless exploitation. That show is absolutely despicable, and there is no low to which it will not sink.
good! they wouldve turned it into a huge sleaze ordeal. even though it was 2 years old. they didnt air it then? so why should they now? plus who hasnt been drunk before?
I hope the video never earns them a penny. The sleazefest that is ET and the Insider and their ilk would be better off replaced with a blank, silent screen. This is a hard world to cope with even with a private life. Living the life Heath lived was bound to send him searching for some relief. We all need relief; we all don’t make the right choices — some of us don’t even know what the right choices are. If he was getting into the drug scene, he was in pain and therefore self-medicating. We don’t need to see his pain captured on an unauthorized video. Whoever got the money for selling it should immediately send it to Michelle for Matilda. Heath Ledger was not his drug-taking. He was talent, heart, and sweetness — an old soul, just like him mom said. Join me in NOT watching the video. Give Heath Ledger and his family that respect.
why can’t the news and tabloids just leave Heath be? It is so appalling how there is such little respect being shown. I refuse to believe all the negative reports about Heath. And another comment is exactly right – the news and tabloids NEVER reported on Heath until his death. I wish everyone would think about what this does for his family and close friends. And it’s no one’s business why Heath and Michelle split up – how do you think all of those reporters would feel having their entire life plastered all over the websites?
It is in extremely poor taste to air a video of him at a party, especially since he was unaware that someone who he thought he could trust was taping him and hoping to profit. He seemed like a sweet, caring, sensitive and artistic person. The World is a darker place without him.
Wow, that is amazing! As a Heath Ledger fan, I find it disgusting how those tabloid shows would go out of their way to exploit a talented actor for the sake of ratings. I respect Heath. I don’t need to see the clips of his bagged body or coffin moving in and out of places. (That’s very sickening of those shows to replay such clips as if its nothing.) I don’t need to see photos of his loved ones looking sad while avoiding paparazzi. I don’t need to know anything about Mary-Kate Olsen. I don’t need to believe that Ledger was a druggie. I’ve been sick and tired of hearing the countless fake news about him. Tabloids keep shamelessly disrespecting Ledger and his loved ones. Ledger never deserved any of this. Now I avoid Ledger “news” as much as possible. Its all lies anyway. (What’s next, Ledger being friends with Osama Bin Laden?)
I’m happy that people finally did something to stop such stupid exploitation. It seems that the tabloids never heard of the phrase “rest in peace.”
Wow, that is amazing! As a Heath Ledger fan, I find it disgusting how those tabloid shows would go out of their way to exploit a talented actor for the sake of ratings. I respect Heath. I don’t need to see the clips of his bagged body or coffin moving in and out of places. (That’s very sickening of those shows to replay such clips as if its nothing.) I don’t need to see photos of his loved ones looking sad while avoiding paparazzi. I don’t need to know anything about Mary-Kate Olsen. I don’t need to believe that Ledger was a druggie. I’ve been sick and tired of hearing the countless fake news about him. Tabloids keep shamelessly disrespecting Ledger and his loved ones. Ledger never deserved any of this. Now I avoid Ledger “news” as much as possible. Its all lies anyway. (What’s next, Ledger being friends with Osama Bin Laden?)
I’m happy that people finally did something to stop such stupid exploitation. It seems that the tabloids never heard of the phrase “rest in peace.”
Thank Goodness for IDPR!! ET and The Insider have reduced themselves to nothing more than trash rags promoting this story.
What possible good would it do to play this 2 year old video?? From what I have read Heath Ledger has been keeping himself clean and to show this video just for ratings or to continue speculation that he died of a drug overdose is about as low as these programs can go.
Shame on these programs. Remember the man for what he was and what might have been…not by the bad choices he may have made.
Too bad they didn’t decide this film was hurtful to his family and friends before tonights episode. They revealed too much already.
I want you to all know, anyway, that the video did not show Heath partaking of anything,. It just showed him there. They were simply going to use it to continue
I want you to all know, anyway, that the video did not show Heath partaking of anything,. It just showed him there. They were simply going to use it to continue to stir implications.
To air a story which is two years old after the person is dead and not able to defend themselves is just low, even for The Insider and I personaly wold expect a little more from ET.
he was cute,i would do him!
They already aired footage from it on today’s show! Really truly horrible. No respect or decency whatsoever.
And what’s more, the video doesn’t even show him doing anything wrong. And yet they still paint him as some sort of tragic druggie!
I wish more than anything that these shows didn’t exist.
Can’t they just let the man be and have the autopsy results be the end of it? His family doesn’t need that now, and his little girl doesn’t need to see that trash when she gets older.
It absolutely amazes me how the entertainment indusrty thrives on smearing an good persons name even after death. You would think that a man so talented that was lost to us in heis prime would be immortalized, but instead he is bashed and accused of horrible things. Does it matter that his beautiful little girl will never see her daddy’s face or feel her daddy’s arms around her again?! Does it matter that his friends and loved ones will never be able to talk with or be with him again?! No, all that matters to these conglomorants is the almighty dollar. They don’t care how they make it. Or who they kick to get it. Truly tragic.
Well, all-right! Finally someone stands up and tells these tabloid bozos “Enough!” Bad enough when these idiots get it wrong but they seem to make an impression on cops who are then forced the recant statements that were completely false in the first place!! It’s yellow journalists like ET, the Insider AND Access Hollywood that made me drop out of journalism school.
Misty was first to post and she put it the best. Everyone should read hers. Just scroll all the way down, people!
I saw the video. Id di not see him doing anything wrong. I saw people around him doing things, he was basically just answering questions that he was being asked to.
I have been around people who did drugs in front of me, that doesn’t mean, I used with them. He says in the video “I should not be here” He was not the one who snorted anything. Also, he said he USED to smoke joint. Wow, that is shocking!
Since the Australian station which procured the video & saw it unedited & said he didn’t do any drugs on the film, I’m not sure what is so salacious about the video Not saying the man was a drug addict but this video apparently doesn’t show one. Shouldn’t the PR firm release a statement indicating that nowhere on the film is he doing anything illegal or maybe force ET to say that – in all fairness to the man’s reputation. I mean he was in Hollywood – I’m sure he did coke before but if he didn’t do it then on tape it is a distinction that deserves to be made. And a TV show should not be allowed to edit a video in order to intimate a different series of events that were not apparent on the film.
Link to Australian news story from television station with footage which confirms he didn’t do any drugs on the film. http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=373473
It sure was in the poorest of taste for ET and The Insider to even consider airing this private video. More shocking is Channel 9 news in Heath’s home country of Australia airing part of the video as a primetime news segment. The video shows no sign WHATSOEVER of Heath doing drugs, he just went into a hotel party to meet with a few fellow Australians he met outside the hotel. As for him saying that he used to smoke joints, that’s nothing new… he admitted that in an interview after the release of his film Candy. And there must be millions of people in the film industry who have done that and worse!
I hope the family is being shielded from all this uneccesary speculation, and i hope the record will be set straight when the toxicology results come out.
Heath ledger- R.I.P
IF–and only if–the full autopsy results showed that his death was drug-related would this speculation be in any way reasonable.
The existing evidence so far does NOT point to anything related to illegal drugs, and not even an overdose of the ones he was legally prescribed.
It’s a damn shame that libel laws don’t protect the recently deceased. But it’s a good thing that ID/PR did, in this case. Normally I find PR reps to be miserable wretches, but they do have their uses and this is one. I bet they threatened to cut off ET’s access to their entire stable of clients if they ran this. And good for them if they did.
I’m not saying Heath never did any drugs. The stuff is out there and circulating through H’wood so much that just about everyone at least tries it. But to imply that he was some sort of drug-addled loser when there’s no evidence of that is reprehensible. Trying a bit of blow a decade ago or smoking a few joints does not an irresponsible druggie make.
Although, I was outraged and had decided not to watch the video of Heath Ledger, I’m relieved that it won’t be shown!! When I think of Heath Ledger, I remember his outstanding performance in THE PATRIOT. His death is a real tragedy and my heart goes out to his grieving family. Let us focus on his accomplishments and the good things he did!!
No offense to the majority of this comment pannel, but the lot of these messages are frankly hypocritcal! Can I get a raise of hands of those of you who have either watched that brief snipit of video on ET or have read or watched any other info pertaining to this whole situation with Heath Ledger since his unfortunate demise? Most likely, the majority of us are not immune to what has happened here recently, and due to the way he was found, are trying to understand what happened. I am not happy with the way that certain types of media are handling this incident either. I’ve tried to be selective on what I chose to view–what is important and what needs to be left alone. None-the-less, I’m reading, I’m watching,…just like the majority of us out there. I am trying to understand how and why he died. I do admire Heath’s work as an actor, but I wonder–in order to bring out that passion and focus that he had, was it neccesary for him to compromise his health to a point of being fatal?
Boy am I relieved.
People behind ET and The Insider should be ashamed of themselves.
Thank God.
See while I think a video, if one did exist, of him doing drugs would be in poor taste to show it is their right to show it. What is wrong is deliberately editing a video to give the wrong impression re: a series of events on said tape to create an overall larger implication. Was he a drug addict? I have no clue but don’t edit a video to try and make it look like something happened that didn’t. And pulling the video prior to showing the whole thing without clarifying that nowhere on the tape did he use drugs – well the damage is done & it may be even worse now since noone will see that he doesn’t really do anything wrong. I don’t understand why “out of respect for him & his family” as they said they don’t clarify more publicly that he didn’t do anything nefarious on this video. Because right now there is a completely erroneous implication being made re: what this tape shows. That is the main problem here imo a TV show editing a tape to change a story.
The truth hurts. He was a drug addict, and the public deserves nothing less than the truth. All you hypocrites make me sick. So he tried to be a good father and live with humility while he goes to drug parties? Sure.