Sofia Ferreira Santos
BBC News
Ian Young
Cultural Reporter
Watch: Looking back at Val Kilmer’s big hit roll
Actor Val Kilmer, who starred in some of the biggest films of the 1980s and 90s, passed away at the age of 65, including Top Gun and Batman Forever.
He also appeared in the Heat of the Western Tombstones and Crime Drama, in addition to playing 1991’s The Doors – The Legendary Band frontman Jim Morrison.
Kilmer died of pneumonia in Los Angeles on Tuesday, his daughter Mercedes told us the media. She said her father was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014 but later recovered.
Although tracheostomy surgery affected his voice and cut off his acting career, he returned to the screen to reprise his role as a fighter pilot Iceman alongside Tom Cruise at the top gun Maverick in 2022.
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In honor of this, Heat Director Michael Mann said:
“After fighting illness for years and maintaining his spirit, this is extremely sad news,” Mann wrote on Instagram.
Francis Ford Coppola, who overseen him at Twixt in 2011, said:
“He was a great person to work with and it was a joy to know. I always remember him.”
Director Ron Howard, who made Willow in 1988, recalled Kilmer’s “amazing” films and “a great range as an actor.”
“His art extends to his poetry, his work, his filmmaking and the way he lived,” he wrote. “Bonn Voyage, Val, and thank you.”
Ex-girlfriend Singer Cher summed him up as “funny, crazy, ass pain, great friend” and “brave” during his illness.
“Smart, challenging, brave”
“Ya, Pal, I miss you,” our actor Josh Brolin wrote on Instagram along with a photo of herself and Kilmer.
“You were smart, challenging, brave, uber creative firecrackers. There’s not much left in them,” he added.
“He was one of the most extraordinary people I’ve ever met. I’m proud to call him a friend and co-conspirator,” said British actor David Theuris, who worked with Kilmer on the unfortunate island of Moreau in 1996.
Britt Will Kemp’s companion, who appeared with Kilmer in the 2004 film Mindhunters, wrote, “It was a lot of great memories of working with him. He was fun, unpredictable, generous and overall very kind to me when I was very new to my work.”
Actor Josh Gad posted: “Rip Val Kilmer. Thank you for defining so many of my childhood films.
James Woods wrote: “His Dock Holiday directing on Tombstone was something all actors dream of achieving. So many great performances. It’s sad to lose him soon.”
Paramount via Shutterstock
Val Kilmer plays Iceman in Top Gun and returns to the 2022 sequel to the film
Born on December 31, 1959, Val Edward Kilmer grew up in a middle-class Los Angeles family.
His parents were Christian scientists, and it was a movement where Kilmer stuck for the rest of his life.
The 17-year-old became a student at the time of enrolling at Juilliard School in New York, one of the world’s most prestigious drama conservatories.
He made his name with comedy top secrets! In 1984, the following year’s real genius, before solidifying his qualification for his acting as Iceman, the archenemy of Cruise’s character Maverick, in 1986’s Top Gun, one of the defining films of the decade.
Kilmer again killed the Fantasy Willow starring and the crime thriller – along with the British actress Joanne Wally, whom he married in 1988, the couple had two children.
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Kilmer played Cape Crusader in 1995’s Batman Forever
He further proved his dynamic and versatile talent when he portrayed rock frontman Morrison with a convincing presence at the door 20 years after the singer’s death.
Tombstone, where Kilmer played Gunfighter Dock Holiday, and the Heat, where he starred with Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, were also hits.
He took over the Batman Cape from Michael Keaton in 1995 for Batman Forever.
In 1997 he appeared in Saint as a master criminal and disguise master based on the book by Leslie Charteris, which also influenced the 1960s television show starring Roger Moore.
Kilmer voiced both God and Moses in the animated film “The Prince of Egypt,” starring Marlon Brando’s crazy partner on Dr. Moreau’s island, but the film became one of Hollywood’s most infamous flops.
Coach John Frankenheimer declared he would never work again with Kilmer, who had gained a reputation for being difficult on set.
He said the reputation is “because I’m very concerned about telling the story well.”
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Kilmer reunited with his Heat co-star Al Pacino in 2019
He played a gay private detective and worked with the petty thief of Robert Downey Jr. in 2005’s Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang.
In 2021, Kilmer released a documentary that recorded the highest and lowest levels of his life and career. Val, who made his debut at the Cannes Film Festival, features 40 years of home recording, including speaking during Cancer surgery after the voice box.
He continued his acting, but his comeback was particularly heart-warming with the arrival of a cameo as Iceman in the much-anticipated sequel to Top Gun.
Cruz said at the time, “I knew Val for decades and for him to come back and play that character… he was a very powerful actor and he quickly became that character.”
Kilmer was also an artist, and often created paintings inspired by his film roles.
“You knew he was going to do something funny.”
Film critic Larashka Ivan Zadeh said in today’s program on BBC Radio 4 that his role at the door summed up his charm and persona.
“There was something dark and nasty, sensual and self-destructive about him,” she said.
“It was quality that meant he wasn’t just the bland Hollywood cute boys who led so many roles. Something else was happening under the surface.”
American entertainment journalist KJ Matthews told BBC Radio 5 Live:
“And I like the way he plays the roles, he always played them in unconventional and unpredictable ways.
“When Val Kilmer became obsessed with the project, you knew he was going to do something interesting with the character.”
