Actor Val Kilmer has died at the age of 65, reports have said, from pneumonia. Kilmer, born on December 31, 1959, was famously known for his roles in “Batman Forever,” and “Top Gun (Iceman), the nickname from the film where he was the rival to Tom Cruise’s character (Maverick).
Kilmer also had a yearslong battle with throat cancer that began in 2014, documented in the 2021 documentary titled “Val” and narrated by his son Jack due to losing his voice from the illness.
“Though I healed quickly from the extensive radiation and chemotherapy, what followed has left my voice impaired,” Kilmer said in the documentary. “I’m still recovering, and it’s difficult to talk and be understood.”
When reflecting on his career it was surprising that Kilmer had little interest in playing the iconic role of Tom “Iceman” Kazansky in the 1986 hit “Top Gun.”
“Believe it or not, I didn’t want to do ‘Top Gun’ at first,” the actor says in “Val.” “I thought the script was silly and I disliked warmongering in films. But I was under contract with the studio, so I didn’t really have a choice.”
Kilmer reflected on his experience of portraying the Caped Crusader in 1995’s “Batman Forever.” He described how isolating it was to act in a Batsuit, as it restricted his movement and made it challenging to hear others.
“After a while, people stop talking to you,” Kilmer recalled in the documentary. “It was a struggle for me to get a performance past the suit. It was frustrating until I realized my performance was just to show up and stand where I was told to.”
In the documentary Kilmer talked about the loss of his young brother Wesley and how his family was never the same after the drowning incident and how he withdrew from doing public events with fans due to effects of the throat cancer. Seemingly retreating from Hollywood his last film appearance was in 2022’s “Top Gun: Maverick.”
“I don’t look great and I’m basically selling my old self, my old career,” Kilmer says. “For many people, it’s the lowest thing you can do: talk about your old pictures and sell photographs of when you were Batman. But it enables me to meet my fans, and what ends up happening is I feel really grateful rather than humiliated because there’s so many people.”
At the end of the documentary Val, Kilmer summarized his legacy and shared that he feels “blessed.”
“I have behaved poorly,” Kilmer said in the documentary. “I have behaved bravely. I have behaved bizarrely to some. I deny none of this and have no regrets because I have lost and found parts of myself that I never knew existed.”
Our condolences to the Kilmer family and his loved ones.
What is your favorite role played by Val Kilmer? How would you summarize your legacy if given the opportunity to produce a documentary about your work?
Val Kilmer. Photo: Instagram
Source: USA TODAY: Val Kilmer says he felt ‘grateful rather than humiliated’ in his final years
