‘It was his fault’ Heath Ledger’s dad opens up about his death in 2008

The movie industry were left reeling eight years ago when news broke that much-loved and well-respected actor, Heath Ledger, had died from an accidental overdose.

Having graduated from roles in Aussie soaps and teen movies, Heath's star was, undoubtedly, at the time of his death in January 2008 on the rise.

From his highly-acclaimed performance in Brokeback Mountain to his depiction of the Joker in The Dark Knight. the 28-year-old actor was well on his way to establishing himself as one of the greatest actors in the industry.

And yet despite the numerous accolades and acclaim, much of the star's private life was spent battling many of his own demons which included insomnia and addiction.

Opening up about the untimely death of his son during a recent interview with the Daily Mail Australia, Kim Ledger insisted no one was to blame for his son's passing, but Heath himself.

"It was totally his fault. It was no one else's – he reached for them," Kim said. "He put them in his system.You can't blame anyone else in that situation."

Aware that his son was over-medicating, Kim recalls Heath's sister Katie offering her brother advice on the night before he died, with Kim recalling: "His sister was on the phone to him the night before telling him not to take the prescription medications with the sleeping tablets."

Haunted by his son's assurances that he knew what he was doing, Kim said of Heath: "He would have had no idea."

Heath shared a daughter with actress Michelle Williams.