How Heath Ledger's Daughter Matilda Gets Along With His Family

After his tragic death in January 2008, Heath Ledger left behind a daughter, Matilda. Now an adult, Matilda Ledger was raised by her mother, actor Michelle Williams, in the United States, following her father's death. However, the late movie star's daughter has still managed to maintain a healthy relationship with the "Dark Knight" star's family, which resides in Australia. Before Heath's daughter started college, she decided to take a gap year in Australia to visit her dad's family, who live in Perth. 

In January 2022, Australian outlet Women's Day exclusively reported that the teenage Matilda not only planned to spend a long period of time in her father's home country but was considering attending university there. According to the outlet, Matilda intended to grow closer to her Aunt Kate and was also excited to spend more time with both of her grandparents. Prior to Matilda's gap year in Australia, her grandfather, Kim Ledger, revealed that he and his wife only see their "little New Yorker" about once a year, so having their granddaughter living close by most likely came as an absolute delight for the grandparents. It is not clear how long the teen stayed in Australia, but she seems to be living in New York again since she was spotted in Brooklyn with her mom in summer 2024.

During an exclusive conversation with Us Weekly in September 2018, Kim Ledger, Heath Ledger's father, revealed that he and his wife, Heath's mother Sally, make time to travel in order to see his granddaughter as much as they can. Kim told the outlet that he and his wife were "going to see [Matilda] in New York" in 2018. Heath's father seems to be quite fond of Michelle Williams, who's now married to theater director Thomas Kail, as Kim also told the outlet that "Michelle has done a great job as a single mom to bring [Matilda] up."

Not only does Matilda have a healthy relationship with her grandparents, but it is said that Heath's daughter will inherit his entire estate. When Heath died, he left everything he had, which consisted of a $16.3 million estate, to his parents, as well as his sisters. In 2008, Heath's parents decided that their then-2-year-old granddaughter should be the sole beneficiary of the late Oscar-winner. This shows how the "Brokeback Mountain" star's family always had the best intentions for their granddaughter.