Julia Stiles Prepares Emotional Tribute to Heath Ledger for DWTS Dedication Night

Actress Julia Stiles told reporters at the InStyle Imagemaker Awards in Los Angeles that she became tearful while rehearsing a tribute to her former "10 Things I Hate About You" co-star Heath Ledger for the upcoming Dedication Night on Dancing With the Stars. The performance, scheduled for the ABC broadcast on Oct. 20, will feature Stiles and professional partner Ezra Sosa dancing to Frankie Valli’s 1967 song “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You,” the same tune Ledger’s character sang in the 1999 film.

"I was crying in rehearsals today. It’s so crazy," Stiles said.

She added that seeing clips from the movie and hearing both her own and Ledger’s voices revived many memories, making the segment especially poignant. Stiles also reflected on the broader purpose of the dedication, noting that performers aim to evoke feeling and keep Ledger’s memory alive through their work.

"One of the things that I’m taking away from this dedication is that we really hope to make people feel something and have people care about the work that you do, and his memory lives on because it was such an incredible performance," she said.

Stiles revealed that DWTS producers had approached her for several years before she finally accepted, citing her turning 45 as a catalyst.

"I think it was turning 45. I was like, ‘I’m halfway to 90! Why not? It’s now or never.’"

She acknowledged the emotional challenges of returning to live performance, including nerves and rediscovering her love of dancing, and joked that she might as well face those challenges in front of a large audience.