10 Things I Hate About You star reveals Heath Ledger’s secret talent

HEATH Ledger charmed us all as loveable bad boy Patrick in 10 Things I Hate About You. But here’s what was going on behind the scenes.

HE WAS already a rising star, but 10 Things I Hate About You marked the moment the world first truly fell in love with Heath Ledger.

The Perth-born actor, who died in 2008, played the unbelievably charming Patrick Verona alongside Julia Stiles’ feisty Kat Stratford in the hit 1999 teen comedy, which also starred Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Larisa Oleynik and David Krumholtz.

Speaking to news.com.au, Stiles revealed the young group of actors in 10 Things “hung out all the time”, and that Ledger had shared with them his quirky hidden talent.

“He was always a delight,” she recalled. “He had a didgeridoo he’d bring with him and he’d play every day ... I’d never seen one before, it was such a novelty.”

Ledger and Stiles were good friends. Source: AAP Photo

Stiles also admitted there had been some behind-the-scenes hook-ups between the castmates.

“Of course there was — you get a bunch of young people together, you’re having a lot of fun ... We were at a time in our lives when we were still open and uncensored, and un-self-conscious — it was fun.”

It helped that most of them weren’t yet famous, meaning they could keep their social lives low-key during filming.

“The only person who was really kind of a recognisable star was Joseph Gordon-Levitt, from his TV show 3rd Rock From The Sun.

“For the rest of us, it wasn’t until the movie came out that that momentum kind of built.”

The actress has paved a successful career since then, starring in Save The Last Dance, Down To You and Hamlet before landing a lead role in the Bourne series alongside Matt Damon.

These days, Stiles plays Georgina Clios in Riviera, a British TV drama which follows the story of a newlywed who discovers after her billionaire husband dies that his fortune has been immersed in violence.

Julia Stiles stars as Georgina Clios in TV series Riviera. Source: SBS.

“I really like the premise — the inspiration behind it is the idea that behind every great fortune is a great crime, and that’s a really interesting theme to explore,” she said.

“I was really happy that producers and writers listened to my input a lot, and I felt like I was involved in the crafting of the story even up until the last episode.”

It was announced in November that the series has been commissioned for a second season.

Riviera season one is available on DVD now.