(Filming of The Patriot) ended in 102 days. Heath Ledger feared he might not make it past day 1. The rangy 21-year-old Aussie (10 Things I Hate About You) plays Martin's son Gabriel, a rebellious, battle-thirsty 18-year-old enlisted man ends up riding on raids with his father and a ragtag band of fighters. Ledger says he prides himself on his self-reliance (he left home at 16 because "I was in a hurry to experience life - to create a soul - and the only way to do that was to put myself out in the arena in the middle of a pack of lions"), but he began his experience on The Patriot certain that he had muffed his audition. Partway through it he announced, "I'm really embarrassed, but I have to leave because I'm wasting your time and I'm wasting my time," and hurridly left. "I guess they were curious," he adds, "'cause they called back and said, 'Come in, show us what you can really do.'"
For the film's September 1999 start, he arrived to shoot his first scene in a state of subdued panic. "I hadn't been in front of a camera in a year, and I'm facing Mel Gibson, "he says. "I went to Dean (Devlin) and said, 'You've got to understand I'm freaked out.' I was delusional. But after one day I saw that Mel was super-relaxed - then it was a walk in the park."