How we made A Knight’s Tale — Heath Ledger knocked my tooth out

Brian Helgeland wrote A Knight’s Tale during a lull after being fired from Payback, and he favoured the idea of jousting as medieval sport. He saw the story as a peasant who wants to be a noble — like a screenwriter wanting to be a director — a guy trying to be something he has no right to be.

The studio’s shortlist for William included Paul Walker, who Helgeland felt was too contemporary, and Heath Ledger, whom he met at LAX carrying a long leather case containing a didgeridoo. Ledger played it on the spot and Helgeland offered him the part. Helgeland wrote Chaucer for Paul Bettany, despite Sony wanting Hugh Grant, and insisted on casting Bettany or he would not make the film; Bettany used a “fake confidence for 15 minutes” approach for the role.

They jousted for real with re-enactors from a Las Vegas show, using balsa wood lances filled with uncooked spaghetti so they would explode like splinters when broken. The production put a Nike logo on Sir Ulrich’s armour as a joke.

United States, Los Angeles, Las Vegas

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