Val Kilmer, star of ‘Batman Forever,’ ‘Tombstone,’ dies at 65
Baku, April 3, AZERTAC
Val Kilmer, who played Bruce Wayne in “Batman Forever,” channeled Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone‘s “The Doors” and starred as a tubercular Doc Holliday in “Tombstone,” died Tuesday in Los Angeles, according to Variety.
His daughter Mercedes told The New York Times the cause was pneumonia. He was 65. He had been battling throat cancer for several years.
The baby-faced blonde actor had a solid run as a leading man with a volatile reputation in the ’80s and ’90s, starring in “Top Gun,” “Real Genius,” “Willow,” “Heat,” and “The Saint.” He returned briefly to screens in 2022’s “Top Gun: Maverick” although he could no longer speak due to his cancer.
In 2021, a documentary on his life, “Val,” was released. His son provided the actor’s voice and the film utilized hundreds of hours of video he had recorded over the years, giving a revealing look at the sets he worked on and showing the actor to be an introspective thinker with an artist’s soul.
Kilmer took over from Michael Keaton for Joel Schumacher’s 1995 “Batman Forever,” receiving mixed reviews for his take on the Dark Knight. He was replaced by George Clooney for 1997’s “Batman & Robin,” a notorious flop that nearly killed the franchise. The New York Times said of “Batman Forever,” “The prime costume is now worn by Val Kilmer, who makes a good Batman but not a better one than Michael Keaton.”
After reportedly turning down a role in Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Outsiders,” Kilmer broke out with a starring role in 1984 spy spoof “Top Secret!,” in which he played a rock star and sang his own songs. Following his turn as a brainy college student in the 1985 sci-fi comedy, “Real Genius,” he became a major star, appearing opposite Tom Cruise in the worldwide hit “Top Gun.” Kilmer met his future wife, actress Joanne Whalley, on the set of Ron Howard’s fantasy film “Willow,” and then appeared with her in “Kill Me Again” in 1989.
One of his most memorable roles was playing the charismatic and doomed Morrison in Oliver Stone’s 1991 “The Doors.” Kilmer memorized the lyrics to all of Morrison’s songs before his audition, and he immersed himself in the role, wearing clothes similar to the singer’s for close to a year. Roger Ebert wrote of his turn as Jim Morrison, “The performance is the best thing in the movie — and since nearly every scene centers on Morrison, that is not small praise.”
After “Batman Forever,” New Line persuaded him to come on board the troubled production of “The Island of Dr. Moreau,” where Kilmer tangled with both the film’s star, Marlon Brando, and director John Frankenheimer. Frustrations on the production mounted when Brando refused to come to the set, and the documentary “Val” revealed a tense set where crew members grimly joked about Brando’s stand-in, named Norm.
In the 1990s, Kilmer starred in Michael Apted’s Western “Thunderheart” and “The Real McCoy” and had a small but memorable role as an Elvis-like mentor in Tony Scott’s “True Romance.” His role as a sardonic Doc Holliday in “Tombstone” (1993) was one of his most beloved performances, and in 1995, he appeared in “Heat” alongside Al Pacino and Robert De Niro.
He went on to star in “The Ghost and the Darkness” and the forgettable remake “The Saint,” which he shot instead of returning as Batman in “Batman & Robin.” Kilmer implied he didn’t return as Batman because of scheduling issues, though Schumacher’s description of him as “psychotic” could have also been a factor.
After the mid-1990s, the studio roles dwindled amidst his reputation as difficult and combative, and he appeared mostly in independent films and supporting roles such as Stone’s poorly-reviewed “Alexander.”
Born in Los Angeles, Kilmer was raised in Chatsworth and attended Hollywood Professional School and the Juilliard School. He appeared off Broadway in “The Slab Boys,” co-starring with Sean Penn and Kevin Bacon, before his first TV role in the afterschool special “One Too Many,” which also starred Michelle Pfeiffer.
He did voices for animated films including “The Prince of Egypt.” His other films included “At First Sight,” “Red Planet,” “Pollock,” “The Salton Sea,” “Wonderland” and “The Missing.” Kilmer continued working in films including “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang” with Robert Downey, Jr., “Déjà Vu” with Denzel Washington, “Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans” and “The Snowman.”
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