{"id":613158,"date":"2026-09-27T07:14:16","date_gmt":"2026-09-27T07:14:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/613158\/"},"modified":"2026-09-27T07:14:16","modified_gmt":"2026-09-27T07:14:16","slug":"magda-szubanski-reveals-phone-call-she-got-from-heath-ledger-after-infamous-kiss-20-years-on","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/613158\/","title":{"rendered":"Magda Szubanski reveals phone call she got from Heath Ledger after infamous kiss, 20 years on"},"content":{"rendered":"

It has been 20 years since the infamous kiss between Magda Szubanski (dressed as Kath and Kim character Sharon Strzelecki) and Heath Ledger. Who could forget the screeches or the pash rash.<\/p>\n

Now, almost two decades on, Szubanski revealed Ledger called her a day after the improvised red carpet stunt.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Heath Ledger was mid-red carpet interview when he was interrupted by Magda Szubanski in character as Sharon from Kath and Kim.\u00a0Twitter\/Nine<\/p>\n

He wanted to ask if he could play Sharon\u2019s stalker on Kath and Kim.<\/p>\n

Millions have rewatched the footage of Szubanski and a then 27-year-old Ledger\u2019s kiss, at the 2006 Australian Film Institute Awards, with some (who are likely unfamiliar with Kath and Kim) convinced that Szubanski was a regular fan. <\/p>\n

Szubanski reflected on the now iconic bit in her upcoming memoir I Can\u2019t Tell You But I Will, out on Tuesday September 29. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe had decided that Sharon, who was in her role as assistant stage manager that night, would ambush Heath and go for the pash. Heath knew nothing of our plan,\u201d Szubanski wrote. <\/p>\n

\u201cBut as soon as Sharon saw Heath, overtaken by my own avatar, she went off-script and screamed. Heath jumped out of his skin, composed himself, strode over, grabbed my face in his hands and planted one right on me. Then Sharon fainted. These are the \u2018actionless\u2019 moments actors live for. <\/p>\n

\u201cBut what came next was even better: Heath rang me the following morning to tell me our red-carpet improv was the most fun he\u2019d had in ages. <\/p>\n

\u201cAnd he wanted to float an idea: could he be a guest on Kath and Kim \u2026 as Sharon\u2019s stalker! Mic drop. Heath and I had a few phone calls about it, and we were scheduled to meet in London when the tragic news came through that he\u2019d died.\u201d <\/p>\n

Ledger died in New York in 2008, aged 28, from an accidental overdose of prescription medications. <\/p>\n

\"Heath<\/p>\n

Ledger and Szubanski\u2019s plans for another collaboration were cut short by the actor\u2019s tragic 2008 death. \u00a0Getty<\/p>\n

Szubanski reflected on the profound loss of Ledger in her memoir. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe loss of a superb human like Heath reverberates so deeply and widely it is impossible to express. But it is one of the great \u2018what ifs\u2019 of my life,\u201d the comedian wrote. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhat if he hadn\u2019t died, and we could have kept playing? The delight and hilarity that would have brought to us, and the world \u2026 it hurts to think about it.\u201d <\/p>\n

\"Magda<\/p>\n

The Dark Knight actor planted a kiss on his fellow Aussie star.\u00a0Nine\/X: TheCinesthetic<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not the first time Szubanski has talked about the viral moment. <\/p>\n

In 2025, Szubanski confirmed on social media that the kiss was preapproved and planned<\/a> after some fans thought it was non-consensual. <\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know how many times I have to correct the record and tell people it\u2019s not some rando fan!! It\u2019s me, Magda Szubanski, as my character Sharon Strzelecki from Aussie sitcom Kath and Kim!\u201d she wrote.<\/p>\n

\"Comedian<\/p>\n

Szubanski had to clarify the stunt with Ledger was planned, after some fans thought the kiss wasn\u2019t consensual. \u00a0Getty Images AsiaPac<\/p>\n

I Can\u2019t Tell You But I Will is Szubanski\u2019s second memoir. It comes after her successful 2016 book, Reckoning. <\/p>\n

In Reckoning Szubanski delved into her suburban Australian childhood, her father\u2019s harrowing past in the Polish resistance during World War II, and her personal journey coming to terms with her sexuality. <\/p>\n

The new book is about Szubanski\u2019s transition from a comedian to a public campaigner while dealing with the illness and death of her mother.<\/p>\n

In 2025 Szubanski shared she was diagnosed with stage 4 Mantle Cell Lymphoma<\/a>, a rare and aggressive type of blood cancer. <\/p>\n

\"Magda<\/p>\n

Szubanski announced her cancer was in remission in February.\u00a0Instagram\/@Magda_szubanski<\/p>\n

In a recent interview with 60 Minutes<\/a>, she opened up about her cancer battle, saying that \u201cit\u2019s almost sure that it will come back\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a question of \u2018when\u2019 and then \u2018how bad\u2019,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It has been 20 years since the infamous kiss between Magda Szubanski (dressed as Kath and Kim character…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":613159,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[430,156,111,139,69],"class_list":["post-613158","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-celebrities","tag-entertainment","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/613158","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=613158"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/613158\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/613159"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=613158"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=613158"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=613158"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}