The 31-year-old signed a three-and-a-half-year deal that re-unites him with manager Martin O'Neill, his former boss at Leicester City where he began his career in 1994.
"I am absolutely delighted," O'Neill told Villa's website,
"Emile has been a brilliant player for a number of years and this is great news. It gives us all a big boost.
"He has arrived at a really important time. We have got a bit of momentum going but we haven't the largest squad in the world.
"John Carew is coming back from his back injury but is still a week or two away from being ready to return and Emile couldn't be arriving at a more opportune moment."
Heskey, whose Wigan contract expired at the end of the season, is O'Neill's first major signing of the January transfer window as he bids to maintain his push for a Champions league spot.
Heskey is likely to make his Villa debut in next Tuesday's league game at Portsmouth.
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