New details about Heath Ledger's tragic death revealed by Hollywood director

A Hollywood director has revealed new details about Heath Ledger's tragic death for the first time.

The Australian actor passed away in January 2008 because of an accidental drug overdose in his New York apartment.

Heath was just 28 years old.

Sixteen years on, Hollywood director Stephen Gaghan, whose films include Robert Downey Jr starring Doolittle and Matthew McConaughey vehicle Gold, has spoken about the devastating phone call he received from Heath's dad Kim shorty after the actor's passing.

Gaghan recently appeared on Malcolm Gladwell's podcast Revisionist History: Development Hell - a show that explores projects that didn't make it to screen.

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The director had planned to make a movie called Blink with Heath, an adaptation of a book by Gladwell.

Gaghan explained on the podcast how Kim found a copy of the film's script beside Heath's body.

He revealed how Kim, who he had never met before, saw his phone number on the script and called him after arriving at his son's apartment.

Recalling the heartbreaking call, Gaghan said: "The dad and the guy who was closest to him in his professional life, they were there with the body and our script was in bed with him, and [Gladwell's] book was on the bedside table.

"I think my number was on the script, like written. These guys, as you can imagine, they are in shock and they dialed that number and I don't know why."

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He 'collapsed' upon hearing the devastating news.

"I'm in an airport with my wife just going from one place to another, and I literally just collapse, never happened to me before or since," the director added.

"My feet went out from under me. I just literally sat down because I was like, 'What?'

Tibrina Hobson/FilmMagic

"The emotion, what they were going through, I should not have been a party to in any way really, and yet as a human or as somebody who just cares, I just was there and I was listening and my wife was looking at me.

"I remember her face and I was just like, I was speechless. I just listened and listened and listened. It was just really, really sad. And it's still sad. For me, I just had to put a pin in it."

The director had planed to make a 'bunch of movies' with Heath - something that sadly never came to fruition.

He concluded: "I met Heath Ledger and I'd gotten to be very, very close with him instantly. I had a real connection with him that was unusual and really special to me.

"I had this feeling that I love this guy and was going to make a bunch of movies with him - and then I got [the] phone call."