Should Heath Ledger win a posthumous Oscar for his supporting role as The Joker in The Dark Knight, his 3-year-old daughter, Matilda Rose Ledger will take the award home. However, the statuette won't technically be hers until she's 18, and she must sign a contract at that time.
The academy said that the late actor's nomination and Matilda's young age made for a complicated situation - one of the most difficult they've dealt with.
Bruce Davis, executive director of the academy said, "It's complicated, because there are two different questions that have to be answered.
"First, we have to decide who gets the job of accepting the award onstage on the night of the ceremony. And then there's the question of the eventual disposition of the posthumous statuette, which may not stay with the person who accepts it."
Normally, a posthumous statuette goes to the spouse, but because Heath and Michelle Williams were never married, it would go to the oldest child.
Matilda is too young to sign the winner's agreement (a signed contract is required by all nominees that says the recipient will not resell his or her Oscar without first offering it back to the academy), so her mom, Michelle, will be legal custodian of the statuette until Matilda turns 18.
Davis added, "At that point, she may execute what we call an heir's agreement and keep the statuette forever - or, if she chooses not to do that, it will return to us."
The academy has not disclosed who will accept the award on stage, should Ledger win. It's usually a close relative or another actor who was close to the winner. Gary Oldman accepted Ledger's Screen Actors Guild last month.
Heath's family members are heading to the U.S. to visit Matilda and Michelle before the Oscar ceremonies and it's rumored that one of them may accept the award on Ledger's behalf.
[Source]
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