Brokeback Mountain’s Heath Ledger : a star on the screen and the best queer ally in real life

When Ang’ Lee‘s BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN burst onto our screens 20 years ago it was a turning point for the advancement of queer cinema into the mainstream.  The film stars Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, Anne Hathaway, and Michelle Williams and its plot depicts the complex romantic relationship between two American cowboys, Ennis Del Mar and Jack Twist, in the American West from 1963 to 1983.The film was frequently referred to in the media as the “gay cowboy movie”, but a number of reviewers noted that both Jack and Ennis were bisexual.  In fact controversy dogged the film right up to the Academy Awards where it won 3 Oscars but was denied the one for Best Picture which shocked both critics and audience alike. 

Doing Brokeback Mountain, was as much a challenge for Heath Ledger, taking on what might seem to be a risky role — playing Ennis, a gay cowboy in love with Jack Twist (Jake Gyllenhaal) — as it was taking on a complex restrained character at a time when so many are broad and brutal. He however was so very supportive of the project and was disgusted at all the blatent homophobia  as he shares in this brilliant interview below