Batman Actor Val Kilmer Dead at 65

Batman Forever and Top Gun star Val Kilmer has died at age 65. The New York Times has confirmed that actor Val Kilmer has died from pneumonia after battling throat cancer for a number of years. Kilmer’s battle with the disease rendered him unable to use his natural speaking voice, making it difficult for him to do any more major acting appearances. However, Val Kilmer was able to reprise his role as Iceman in Top Gun: Maverick. His condition was factored into the plot of the film and led to one of the film’s most powerful moments. Iceman’s presence is felt throughout the entire film via the use of archival images and text message exchanges between him and Maverick, but he does also share a scene with Tom Cruise.

In the scene, Iceman’s communication is limited to text on a computer screen due to Kilmer being unable to speak. However, the filmmakers did utilize AI and post-production techniques to give Iceman a brief speaking line, allowing for a touching moment between him and Maverick. His appearance in the Tom Cruise sequel helped inspire the Disney+ revival of Willow, another film that he starred in decades prior. A documentary about Val Kilmer, simply titled Val, was released in 2021 and features behind-the-scenes footage that Kilmer shot himself throughout his life. It also chronicles the Tombstone actor’s struggle with throat cancer. The A24-distributed documentary has a 93% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and is currently available to stream on Prime Video for Amazon Prime subscribers.

Of course, Kilmer’s most noteworthy role was as The Caped Crusader himself, Batman. Val Kilmer was the third actor to play Bruce Wayne/Batman in a feature-length, theatrical Batman movie via Batman Forever, succeeding Adam West and Michael Keaton. Kilmer is one of the few actors to play Batman only once, and the film received mixed reactions from fans and critics alike, though Kilmer’s performance as Batman was a highlight.

Batman Forever reportedly has an alternate director’s cut, referred to as “The Schumacher Cut,” which is said to have 50 minutes of additional footage and is less campy and darker than the released film. Writer Akiva Goldsman claims that he has seen this version of Batman Forever and has been pushing for it to be released since the early 2020s, though Warner Bros. currently has no plans to make this version available to the public at this time.

Kilmer’s long list of credits includes iconic films like The Doors, Tombstone, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Heat, and many more. Michael Mann is currently developing a follow-up to Heat that will be part prequel, part sequel. Kilmer’s character Chris Shiherlis is expected to return, though played by a different actor, potentially Austin Butler, given the prequel aspect of the film.

What was your favorite Val Kilmer role? Let me know in the comments.