Hoffman's funeral draws Streep, Blanchett

The private funeral for Philip Seymour Hoffman in Manhattan has begun with a sombre, star-studded audience in attendance that includes Meryl Streep, Cate Blanchett, Ethan Hawke, Amy Adams, Ellen Burstyn and Spike Lee.

The list of mourners also included Michelle Williams, Julianne Moore, Joaquin Phoenix, Louis CK, Mary Louise Parker, John Slattery, Jerry Stiller, Marisa Tomei, Diane Sawyer and her director husband, Mike Nichols.

Hoffman, 46, was found dead Sunday after an apparent heroin overdose in his apartment. He leaves behind his partner of 15 years, Mimi O'Donnell, and their three children.

The actor's body was carried into the church by pallbearers, and O'Donnell - holding their youngest child - followed. Playwright David Bar Katz, who found Hoffman's body, looked visibly upset as he arrived.

The ceremony was being held at the Church of St Ignatius Loyola, the same limestone church that hosted the funerals of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Lena Horne and Aaliyah.

A larger memorial service is being planned for later this month.

The rumpled, heavy-set Hoffman was known to dive into roles and was nominated for Academy Awards four times: for Capote, which he won, as well as The Master, Doubt, and Charlie Wilson's War.

More tests are needed to determine what exactly killed the actor, who was found with a syringe in his arm and what authorities said were dozens of packets of heroin in his apartment.

Autopsy results were inconclusive, authorities said this week.

Hoffman spoke candidly over the years about past struggles with drug addiction. After 23 years sober, the versatile actor reportedly checked himself into rehab for 10 days last year after relapsing in 2012.