Val Kilmer (1959-2025)
Val Kilmer, the renowned actor known for his roles in "Top Gun," "The Doors," "Tombstone," and "Batman Forever," has died. He was 65. His daughter, Mercedes, told the US media that the actor had passed away from pneumonia.
Kilmer was born in Los Angeles to a middle-class family on December 31, 1959. He was the youngest student admitted to the Juilliard School acting program. His first roles were "Top Secret!" and "Real Genius." However, his breakthrough performance came in "Top Gun," where he played the arrogant naval pilot Iceman alongside Tom Cruise.
In 1991, he established himself as a leading man by portraying the legendary rock star Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone's biopic "The Doors." He followed it up with a star-studded run of '90s films, which included "Tombstone," "True Romance," and "Heat" opposite Robert De Niro and Al Pacino. In 1995, Kilmer received the biggest challenge of his acting career when he replaced Michael Keaton as the Caped Crusader in "Batman Forever." The film grossed at the box office but received mixed reviews, and Kilmer declined to appear in the next Batman movie. Instead, he starred as the master criminal and master of disguise in 1997's "The Saint," based on the books by Leslie Charteris, which also inspired the 1960s TV series starring Roger Moore. In 1998, he also voiced Moses and God in the DreamWorks animated movie "The Prince of Egypt." With several films, such as "The Island of Dr. Moreau" and "Red Planet," underperforming and his reputation for being difficult on set, Kilmer's stardom began to falter.
Throughout the 2000s, he primarily worked in smaller indie films, including "The Salton Sea" and "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" opposite Robert Downey Jr., as well as in supporting roles in larger films, such as Oliver Stone's "Alexander" and "Deja Vu." He starred as John Holmes, a porn star, in "Wonderland" and appeared with Nicolas Cage in "Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans."
In later years, he faced health issues and was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014. Though he recovered after several surgeries, his voice was never the same. Kilmer starred in several direct-to-video films, but another actor dubbed his character's voice. In 2021, he did a retrospective on his career in the documentary "Val." But his last appearance on the big screen is back where it all started, a cameo role alongside Tom Cruise in 2022's "Top Gun: Maverick."
Kilmer was married to British actress Joanna Whalley, with whom they had co-starred in movies like "Willow" and "Kill Me Again." The couple had two children. Their names were Mercedes and Jack. But after eight years of marriage, they divorced.
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