Movie star Heath Ledger has been found dead in his Manhattan, New York apartment. The actor was declared dead by medics at his Broome Street, SoHo home at 3:30pm on Tuesday, according to the New York Police Department. A police spokesperson reveals Ledger was discovered by his housekeeper, after he failed to answer the door to a masseuse he had booked to give him a massage. While prescription drugs were found at scene, there were no illegal drugs discovered. The Australian Brokeback Mountain star, 28, was just about to start promoting the Batman Begins sequel The Dark Knight, in which he plays movie villain The Joker. Born in Perth in 1979, Ledger made a name for himself in a series of brooding roles on the big screen; he was nominated for a 2006 Oscar for his portrayal of Ennis Del Mar in the gay-themed drama Brokeback Mountain. Fiercely private, Ledger has openly spoken about his public shyness, but he hit the headlines for romances with Heather Graham, Naomi Watts and his Brokeback Mountain co-star Michelle Williams, the mother of his two-year-old daughter Matilda Rose.

A star field hockey player and athlete, Ledger turned his attentions to drama in his teens and, when a friend headed to Sydney, Australia to chase an acting dream, the star-to-be went along for the ride. He landed a break as a gay cyclist in 1996's Sweat - a TV drama about a group of Olympic hopefuls - and then he portrayed the best friend of a rapist in low-budget 1997 movie Blackrock. Hedger left Australia to find acting work in America in 1999 and landed the lead in Aussie director Gregor Jordan's crime thriller Two Hands. That film helped him land the lead hunk role in teen movie hit Ten Things I Hate About You. He went on to play Mel Gibson's son in The Patriot and Billy Bob Thornton's troubled offspring in Monster's Ball. Both roles earned Ledger high praise from critics. But then came a string of critical flops - A Knight's Tale, Ned Kelly, The Four Feathers, The Order, Lords Of Dogtown, and The Brothers Grimm. But then followed Ang Lee's Brokeback Mountain in 2005, which Ledger has often described as a major turning point in his professional and personal life. As awkward cowboy Ennis Del Mar, Ledger regained his position as one of Hollywood's top stars. The role led to a Best Actor Oscar nod and the coveted role of The Joker in the upcoming The Dark Knight, for which he's already receiving great acclaim. Ledger has also won acclaim for his role as Robbie Clark in quirky Bob Dylan-inspired movie I'm Not There. The tragic star was last seen publicly on the London set of director Terry Gilliam's The Imaginarium Of Doctor Parnassus on Saturday.

Nicole Kidman and Mel Gibson have become the first stars to speak publicly about fellow Aussie Heath Ledger's shock death. The Brokeback Mountain star, 28, was found dead at his apartment in New York on Tuesday and Kidman admits the tragedy has left her heartbroken. In a brief statement, the actress says, "What a tragedy. My heart goes out to his family." Gibson, who played the actor's father in The Patriot, states, "I had such great hope for him. He was just taking off, and to lose his life at such a young age is a tragic loss." And leading movie news source, Clint Morris, reveals Ledger's fellow Australians have been left stunned by the news of the actor's sudden death. Movie producer Morris, the man behind website MovieHole.net, says, "The whole of Australia is in deep shock. I liked Heath. He was a good guy. Loved his daughter. Knew his sister too." Morris reveals Ledger's death will present problems for Batman producers - because the actor had already signed on to reprise his role as The Joker in the follow-up to this summer's The Dark Knight. He adds, "I guess they can easily re-write it or re-cast. But yes, it's true, Heath was supposed to return in the next Batman movie." Hollywood is also mourning the actor's death; John Travolta has revealed Ledger was "one of my favorite actors," adding, "His abilities are rare." And Alan Horn, the President of Warner Brothers - the studio behind The Dark Knight, reveals the shocking news has left movie executives "devastated." Horn says, "The entertainment community has lost an enormous talent. Heath was a brilliant actor and an exceptional person."

Radiohead rocker Jonny Greenwood and Eddie Vedder both missed out on a Best Score Oscar nomination for There Will Be Blood and Into The Wild, because both soundtracks were ruled ineligible. Many Oscar watchers were left stunned when the rock stars' movie score efforts were seemingly ignored by voters, but Oscar rules left both stars compositions out of the running. Greenwood's music for There Will Be Blood missed out because officials at the Academy Of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences decided that a large part of it was not written specifically for the film, which picked up eight Oscar nominations on Tuesday . A proportion of the soundtrack was taken from Greenwood's Popcorn Superhet Receiver composition, which was commissioned by the BBC, and won him a British Composer Award in 2007. And Pearl Jam singer Vedder's soundtrack for Sean Penn Into The Wild was also deemed ineligible for an Academy Award nomination - because the score is too "song-based."

Late actor Brad Renfro had a secret son who lived in Japan with his mother. The Apt Pupil star, 25, was found dead at his Los Angeles apartment last week. And now his family have confirmed that Renfro had a child - who he spent time with in his native Tennessee before his tragic death - but have refused to name the boy or reveal any further details in order to protect his privacy. And Renfro's step-mother Kim is determined to shield her grandson from any press intrusion. She tells TMZ.com, "We did expect this (level of media attention) because people didn't know he had a son. But we're very thankful Brad got to see his son before he died." The Los Angeles County Coroner conducted an autopsy on Renfro on Thursday, but the cause of death has yet to be revealed.

Supermodel Kate Moss suing a British tabloid newspaper over claims she indulged in an orgy during her recent birthday celebrations. The News Of The World reported the 34-year-old catwalk beauty took part in a steamy sex session with two female models and a man at the Dorchester Hotel in London last Wednesday night. But a representative for Moss' modeling agency Storm has hit back at the newspaper's claims - calling the article "false and defamatory." And now, according to British magazine Now, the star has instructed her lawyers to take legal action against the publication. Moss celebrated her 34th birthday with a celebrity-studded party in London with a host of stars turning up, including Rolling Stone rocker Ronnie Wood, Kelly Osbourne and musician Jools Holland.

Movie legend Jane Fonda has a secret adopted daughter. The actress has took custody of the African-American girl - the daughter of two members of civil rights group the Black Panther Party - after meeting her at a summer camp she ran with her ex-husband Tom Hayden, who she was married to from 1973 to 1990. Fonda tells the New York Daily News, "There was this one little girl, her name is Lulu. I adopted her, and she's my daughter now. She came and lived with me, and I asked her one day, 'Why has this camp been important to you?' And she hesitated for just a second and then said, 'It was the first time I ever met people who talked about the future.'"

Ruby Dee, Hal Holbrook and Ellen Page will set new age records if they win gold at the Oscars next month. All three have been nominated for best acting and supporting roles. If Dee or Holbrook, who are both 83, win Best Supporting honors for their roles in American Gangster and Into The Wild respectively they will become the oldest stars to win acting accolades at the Academy Awards. Juno's Page, who turns 21 on February 21, will be the youngest Best Actress winner if she takes home the statuette on February 24. That record is currently held by Marlee Matlin, who was 21 years and seven months when she claimed her Oscar for Children Of A Lesser God in 1986.

Two-time Emmy-winning actress Lois Nettleton has died after losing a battle with lung cancer. The 80-year-old was a veteran of the Broadway stage, films and television; she received Emmys for her roles in The American Woman: Profiles In Courage and Insight in 1977 and 1983 respectively. Born in Illinois, Nettleton was a former Miss Chicago and Miss Illinois before she became an actress in the late 1940s. She made her Broadway debut in Darkness At Noon in 1949 and quickly became connected to the works of playwright Tennessee Williams after starring in a string of his plays. She made her film debut in the movie adaptation of Williams' Period Of Adjustment in 1962. Other film roles included Valley Of Mystery, The Man In The Glass Booth and The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas. She was also known for regular roles on sci-fi TV series The Twilight Zone, and she also had recurring roles on beloved shows Murder She Wrote, Full House and The Golden Girls. Nettleton died last week.

Oscar-nominee Julie Christie would love to boycott next month's Academy Awards, but she's scared it would destroy her career. The actress - who first won an Oscar his 1965 for her role in Darling - has picked up a new nod for her role as an Alzheimer's disease sufferer in Away From Her. Speaking before discovering her nomination on Tuesday - the 67-year-old confessed she is tempted to make a stand and stay away. She said, "I just don't have the guts not to go. It's pathetic, truly, to admit this, but even now I don't think I could deal with pissing off the media and all they'd say. I mean, what if I won and wasn't there? I don't care about pissing off 'Hollywood' because it really doesn't exist anymore. But pissing off the media? It was difficult when I was a girl, and they're not any kinder now. I just hate not being strong enough."

Daniel Day-Lewis is thrilled with his Oscar nomination for There Will Be Blood, and paid tribute to the movie's director Paul Thomas Anderson. Day-Lewis picked up his fourth Best Actor nomination for his role in the movie - and is hopeful he can add to the statuette he won for his role in 1990 film My Left Foot. But the British star has dedicated the honor to Anderson, who has two nominations, for Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay and helped the movie also pick up a nod in the Best Picture category. Day-Lewis says, "You put me shoulder to shoulder with a group of fine actors. I'm proud to be in their company and to have the broader recognition for the film is a lovely thing. I couldn't be happier for Paul Thomas Anderson to whom we owe everything."