Remembering Val Kilmer (1959-2025)

Val Kilmer, known for his sometimes very method acting, died April 1 at 65. Kilmar had been diagnosed with throat cancer in 2015 and had required a breathing tube. Cause of death was determined to be pneumonia. Kilmer had recently been confirmed for a red carpet appearance at the Beverly Hills Film Festival the night of his death.

Kilmar was born in the L.A. suburb of Chatsworth on New Year's Eve 1959, the middle of three brothers. His younger brother drowned in the family swimming pool (the home was purchased from screen legends Roy Rogers and Dale Evans) after suffering an epileptic seizure just as Kilmer was about to leave for New York to study acting at Julliard. At 17, he was the youngest person admitted to the school's drama division. At Julliard, he co-worte the play How It All Began, which ended up being directed by Des McAnuff and produced by Joseph Papp for The Public Theater. Kilmer made his Broadway debut in Slab Boys in 1983 opposite Sean Penn and Kevin Bacon.

1984 saw Kilmer make his film debut as the lead in World War II spy spoof Top Secret!, from the team behind Airplane! Kilmer was also dating Cher at the time, which the film makes a subtle reference to in one scene. He then appeared in an ABC After School Special, One Too Many, playing a teenage alcoholic opposite Mare Winningham, followed by the laser-tech whiz kid in 1985's Real Genius. Kilmer initially turned down the role of 'Iceman' in Top Gun. Director Tony Scott talked him into the role by telling him, 'Don't worry, your hair will look great.' Kilmer returned to the role for a poignant scene in 2022's Top Gun: Maverick, his last film appearance.

1988 saw him take on the role of Madmarigan in Ron Howard's Willow, where Kilmer met his future wife Joanne Whalley. The two wed months after completing the film and divorced in 1996. His next big role was playing Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone's The Doors (1991), spending months to prepare for the role, using his own voice to record Morrison's songs over the original Doors master tapes (the film actually combined both Kilmer's and Morrison's voices). Stone said Kilmer's resemblance to the singer was uncanny, and he felt that the performance was more possession than acting. In 1993, Kilmer played the scene-stealing Doc Holliday in classic Western Tombstone, and in 1995 he took over the cape and cowl from Michael Keaton in Batman Forever, a part he accepted without reading the script. Unfortunately, he and the studio could not come to terms for the next film, Batman & Robin, so George Clooney took over the role, briefly. Other notable films Kilmer appeared in during this period include True Romance (1993), Heat (1995), The Island of Dr. Moreau (1996), The Saint (1997), Wonderland (2003) and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005). Kilmer also provided the voice of K.I.T.T. in the 2008-2009 reboot of TV's Knight Rider.

Kilmer's other notable films include Thunderheart, The Real McCoy, Wings of Courage, The Ghost and the Darkness, The Prince of Egypt (as the voice of God), At First Sight, Pollock, Red Planet, The Salton Sea, The Missing, Spartan, Mindhunters, Alexander, Deja Vu, Columbus Day, Felon, Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, MacGruber, Gun, Kill the Irishman, Deep in the Heart, 7 Below, Breathless, Planes (as the voice of Bravo), Palo Alto, The Super, 1st Born, Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, Paydirt, and Riptide. He played a version of himself in The Fourth Dimension, and made an uncredited appearance in The Love Guru.

TV movie and miniseries credits include The Murders in the Rue Morgue, The Man Who Broke 1,000 Chains, Billy the Kid, Comanche Moon, XIII: The Conspiracy, and The Spoils of Babylon. TV series credits include Entourage, Numb3rs, Life's Too Short, Psych, and Robot Chicken.

Kilmer also wrote, directed and starred as Mark Twain in the one-man show Citizen Twain, in which he toured the country and filmed for the big screen.

Kilmers received Best Supporting Actor nominations from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films for his roles in Heat and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang; a CableACE Award nomination for Actor in a Movie of Miniseries for The Man Who Broke 1,000 Chains; a Best Actor nomination for The Doors from the Chicago Film Critics Association; Satellite Award wins for Outstanding Actor in a Supporting Role, Comedy or Musical for Kiss Kiss Bang Bang in 2005, and a Humanitarian Award in 2022; a Grammy nomination for Best Spoken Word Album for The Mark of Zorro, MTV Movie + TV Award nominations for The Doors, Tombstone, Batman Forever, Heat and MacGruber; a Prism Award win for The Salton Sea; Razzie nominations for The Island of Dr. Moreau, The Saint and Alexander, and a Razzie Redeemer nomination for the documentary Val.

Kilmer is survived by his children Mercedes and Jack.