NEW YORK -- Heath Ledger was found dead Tuesday in a Manhattan apartment, naked in bed with sleeping pills nearby, police said. The Australian-born actor was 28.

There was no obvious indication of suicide, NYPD spokesman Paul Browne said.

Ledger had an appointment for a massage at the SoHo apartment that is believed to be the home of the "Brokeback Mountain" actor, Browne said. The massage therapist and a housekeeper found his naked body in the bed at about 3:30 p.m. They tried to revive him, but he was already dead.

"We are all deeply saddened and shocked by this accident," Ledger's publicist, Mara Buxbaum, said in a statement Tuesday night. "This is an extremely difficult time for his loved ones and we are asking the media to please respect the family's privacy and avoid speculation until the facts are known."

Ledger leaves behind a daughter, Matilda, who he fathered with actress, Michelle Williams. The couple lived in Brooklyn together until they split up last year.

Ledger's roles included the suicidal son of Billy Bob Thornton in "Monster's Ball" and he had starring roles in "A Knight's Tale" and "The Patriot." He was nominated for an Oscar for the 2005 film "Brokeback Mountain."

The actor is scheduled next to appear as the Joker in the "Batman Begins" sequel "The Dark Knight," scheduled for release in July.

Alan Horn, President & COO of "The Dark Knight" studio Warner Bros., and Jeff Robinov, president of the Warner Bros. Pictures Group, issued a statement on the tragedy Tuesday afternoon.

"The studio is stunned and devastated by this tragic news," said Horn and Robinov. "The entertainment community has lost an enormous talent. Heath was a brilliant actor and an exceptional person. Our hearts go out to his family and friends."

Ledger most recently appeared in "I'm Not There," in which he played one of the many incarnations of Bob Dylan.

Ledger told The New York Times in a November interview that he "stressed out a little too much" during the Dylan film, and had trouble sleeping while portraying the Joker, whom he called a "psychopathic, mass-murdering, schizophrenic clown with zero empathy."

"Last week I probably slept an average of two hours a night," Ledger told the newspaper. "I couldn't stop thinking. My body was exhausted, and my mind was still going." He said he took two Ambien pills, which only worked for an hour, the paper said.

Outside the building on an upscale street, paparazzi and gawkers gathered, and several police officers put up barricades to control the crowd of about 300. Onlookers craned their necks as officers brought out a black body bag on a gurney, took it across the sidewalk and put it into a white medical examiner's office van.

An autopsy was planned for Wednesday, medical examiner's office spokeswoman Ellen Borakove said.