New York  - Christian Bale has revealed that fellow actor Heath Ledger was in a calm mood before his death, contrary to reports that his edgy portrayal of the Joker in the forthcoming Batman movie The Dark Knight had left him unbalanced.

"He was incredibly intense in his performance but incredibly mellow and laid-back," Bale, 34, tells Details magazine in an interview for its forthcoming issue.

Ledger, 28, was found dead on January 22 in New York City of an accidental overdose of prescription pills shortly after speaking about how playing the Joker had tormented him, and he couldn't sleep during the filming of Dark Knight.(dpa)