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Julia Stiles Honors Heath Ledger on 'Dancing with the Stars'
· Confirmed
In Short: Julia Stiles reunited with the cast of '10 Things I Hate About You' to honor Heath Ledger on 'Dancing with the Stars' Tuesday night.
Julia Stiles paid tribute to Heath Ledger on 'Dancing with the Stars' Tuesday night, performing a contemporary dance to 'Can't Take My Eyes Off You' in honor of her late co-star from the 1999 film '10 Things I Hate About You'.
Stiles, who played Kat Stratford in the teen rom-com, was joined on the dance floor by fellow cast members Andrew Keegan, Susan May Pratt, Larisa Oleynik, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Gabrielle Union, creating a heartwarming reunion.
Ledger's role as Patrick Verona was his first American lead, and his performance solidified him as a teen heartthrob. Stiles recalled Ledger's magnetic personality and his ability to make her feel like Princess Diana with just a look.
During rehearsals, Stiles expressed her admiration for Ledger's 'lust for life' and wished she could call him to share how much people still love their movie. She noted, 'I have so many great memories, but I’m also sad because I really wish that I could pick up the phone and be like, “Hey dude, people really care about that movie. We did something special.” And I can’t do that.'
Stiles and her partner Ezra Sosa approached the performance with care, sensitivity, and intention, aiming to honor Ledger's memory with dignity, love, and respect. Sosa said, 'This isn’t about defining a relationship or telling a story that isn’t ours to tell. It’s about honoring a beautiful moment in time, a film that changed so many lives, and someone whose impact continues to be felt by generations.'
The dance received a score of 36 out of 40, and Stiles reflected on her 17-year-old self during the filming of '10 Things I Hate About You', remembering Ledger's 'Cheshire grin' and his ability to light up the room.
Ledger's legacy remains significant, marked by an impressive body of work including acclaimed films like 'The Dark Knight', for which he posthumously won an Academy Award, as well as 'A Knight’s Tale', 'The Patriot', and 'Brokeback Mountain'.
Stiles and Sosa's dedication night performance was a poignant tribute to Ledger, celebrating the joy and capturing his essence in the time they had together filming '10 Things I Hate About You'.
What this adds
The story adds new details about Ledger's audition and his impact on the cast, as well as the emotional significance of the tribute for Stiles.
Background
Julia Stiles reunited with the cast of '10 Things I Hate About You' to honor Heath Ledger on 'Dancing with the Stars' Tuesday night.
Dancing with the Stars is an international television franchise based on the format of the British television series Strictly Come Dancing, itself a successor to the show Come Dancing (1950–1998). It is distributed by BBC Studios, the commercial arm of the BBC.
What's confirmed
- In a dance dedicated to the late Heath Ledger, Julia Stiles reunited with much of the cast of the 1999 film 10 Things I Hate About You during Tuesday night’s episode of Dancing with the Stars.
- “He just walked into the room and lit it up,” she told E!
- Ledger died in 2008 of an accidental overdose caused by mixing painkillers and sedatives that were prescribed to him.
- Actors Andrew Keegan, Susan May Pratt, Larisa Oleynik, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Gabrielle Union joined Stiles on the ballroom floor, creating a heartwarming reunion.
- “I don’t think we’ve ever approached a performance with more care, sensitivity, and intention than this one. From the very beginning, it was incredibly important to both Julia and I that this tribute be created with the utmost respect, thoughtfulness, and close guidance from those who hold Heath and his memory closest,” he wrote.
What's still developing
- When Ledger auditioned for the part of Patrick Verona, it sounds like it was a done deal right out the gate; according to director Gil Junger, the future Oscar winner nailed his audition in a matter of seconds.
- "I just want people to know there was a suffering individual there, who couldn’t have been a lovelier human being. I prefer to remember Heath as a 20-year-old kid doing his first American lead with a big giant Cheshire grin smile on his face, taking charge as the leader of the group like any good ensemble leader should."
- "I mean, I was 17, so I remember Heath — because he was older — giving me tips on what being drunk looks and feels like.” While we're talking about iconic 10 Things I Hate About You moments, the scene where Patrick dances and sings all over the bleachers almost had a very different sound.
- "That’s a pretty special gift, and I don’t think it’s talked about enough.” In addition to being an wildly talented and captivating human being, Ledger also was very helpful on set.
- In honor of the beloved rom-com's 20th anniversary, The New York Times chatted with the cast and crew about the movie, which is loosely based on William Shakespeare's The Taming of the Shrew.
- Stiles told her partner Ezra Sosa that she had always admired his “lust for life” and wanted to replicate that in her contemporary routine, which the pair aptly performed to “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” by Frankie Valli.
- The movie follows Patrick Verona (Ledger), a high school bad boy who is recruited by Cameron James (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) to woo Kat Stratford (Stiles), a militant feminist whose refusal to date is preventing her parents from allowing her younger sister, Bianca (Larisa Oleynik) from dating.
- Each of season 35’s remaining contestants teased what they planned for their dedications in the lead-up to Tuesday’s new episode, from frontrunner Ezra Frech’s tribute to his mom, Bahar, to underdog Tyler Cameron’s vague tease of a dedication “to mothers everywhere.” But it will be hard to top what Stiles brought to the ballroom this week.
- The Dedication Night performance to Frankie Valli’s “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” was in homage to her late costar Ledger, who died in 2008 from an accidental prescription drug overdose at 28.
- — madison kaitlyn |-/ (@TourDe_CBUS) October 21, 2026 In 10 Things I Hate About You, Ledger’s character serenades Stiles’ with a rendition of the Frankie Valli song, and Ezra Sosa choreographed a routine that was the perfect mix of heartfelt and fun to pay tribute.
- Though her sister Brooks Nader was the fifth star to be eliminated on season 33, the Love Thy Nader star said goodbye to the competition after her debut episode on Sept. 16.
- “The last thing I want is to become a distraction from an important week or from the incredible work my dance partner Jenna Dewan is putting in,” he continued.
Sources
- ABC Networklink
- Bustlelink
- Deadlinelink
- Entertainment Weeklylink
- LADbiblelink
- NBC Newslink
- Peoplelink
- SSBCracklink
- TODAY.comlink
- TV Insiderlink
- The Hollywood Reporterlink
- Us Weeklylink
- Varietylink
- eonline.comlink
- Peoplelink
- WarpBeat — background on Julia Stiles Honors Heath Ledger on 'Dancing with the Stars' link
- USA Trending Updates — video link