Val Kilmer, the talented actor and artist famed for his performances in Top Gun and Batman Forever, passed away at 65 on April 1st. His daughter, Mercedes, confirmed that he died from complications related to pneumonia.
Film critic Roger Ebert once remarked in the Chicago Sun-Times, “If there is an award for the most unsung leading man of his generation, Val Kilmer should get it.” Kilmer was known for his vibrant charisma, often stealing scenes in films like Michael Mann’s crime thriller Heat and the Western Tombstone. Despite his acting talents being overlooked at times, his artistic abilities were even less recognized.
After being diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014, Kilmer overcame the illness but lost his voice. Following this, he focused more on painting, sharing with W Magazine in 2017 that he had a breakthrough as an artist when New York’s Woodward Gallery hosted his solo exhibition, “Valholla”. This show, a nod to both Norse mythology and Kilmer’s heritage, featured abstract paintings on metal sheets adorned with vibrant enamel splashes.
Prior to this exhibition, Kilmer had been painting for many years and even held a show in Tokyo in 2004 with Yoko Ono’s assistance. His artistry spans from kaleidoscopic abstracts to representational pieces featuring characters like Doc Holliday from Tombstone, Batman, and his inspiration, Mark Twain.
Born in Los Angeles in 1959, Kilmer was the youngest to be accepted into the Juilliard School’s Drama Division at age 17. He debuted on screen as a rockstar in the 1984 comedy Top Secret after turning down a role in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Outsiders. He also declined David Lynch’s Blue Velvet before achieving fame with his role as fighter Lt. Tom “Iceman” Kazansky in Top Gun, a character he revisited in a poignant scene in Top Gun: Maverick in 2022.
“I can’t tell you how much I admire his work, how grateful and honored I was when he joined Top Gun and came back later for Top Gun: Maverick,” Cruise stated yesterday during a speech at CinemaCon in Las Vegas. “I think it would be really nice if we could have a moment [of silence] together because he loved movies and he gave a lot to all of us. Just kind of think about all the wonderful times that we had with him.”
In addition to acting, Kilmer was a published poet, releasing his book My Edens After Burns in 1983, which showcased his diverse interests. His passion for theater is prominently featured in the 2021 documentary Val, which follows his health challenges after a tracheotomy and includes home footage from his early performances. In 1983, Kilmer appeared off-Broadway in The Slab Boys alongside Kevin Bacon, Sean Penn, and Jackie Earle Haley.
Kilmer had a deep admiration for Mark Twain, dedicating years to crafting a one-man play titled Citizen Twain, which he performed nationwide starting in 2010. He portrayed Twain in the 2019 film Cinema Twain, based on this play, and in the 2014 adaptation of Twain’s Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn.
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