The Dark Knight Approaches $1 Billion Mark
Even though I’ve devoted this entire semester to writing about Heath Ledger, I’m constantly coming by articles that are starting to make me believe that I really don’t have to. More and more movie experts are saying that Ledger is a lock for the Best Supporting Actor nominaiton for the 2009 Oscars, and many of them are even going as far to say that he is a loc to win the whole thing. This time around, I read an article in which the numbers speak for themselves.
As of November 11, 2008, The Dark Knight has brought in $997, 535,317 in the box office. When the blockbuster is re-released in January, it is expected that there will be more than enough moviegoers that will see the film again to push the film over the $1 billion mark.
The Dark Knight was a movie that could stand on it’s own with or without Ledger. Director Christopher Nolan put a true masterpiece together when he filmed TDK. However, none of this would have been possible if it wasn’t for the brilliant performance of Heath Ledger as the Joker. Before his untimely death, the marketing plan for TDK was intended to center around the character of The Joker. There was a reason for that. The role was truly one of the all-time greats.
However, the death of Ledger has forever caused a cloud of mystique linger over his portrayal of The Joker. Where would the story have gone after TDK? What new heights could have been conquered my Ledger if he hadn’t have passed on in January? That’s what is so interesting about this topic. There are so many angles that one needs to consider that may make or break his Oscar chances, but then so many new angles are developed in your head that make you wander, in Lehman’s terms, “What if?”
