©Courtesy of Paramount Pictures
Val Kilmer, the movie star who was renowned for his roles as Iceman in “Top Gun“, Batman, and Doc Holliday in “Tombstone“, has passed away at the age of 65, according to his daughter, the Associated Press.
In Los Angeles, Kilmer died of pneumonia, surrounded by family and friends, according to daughter Mercedes Kilmer’s email to the news agency. Kilmer has referred to his life as’magical’ and he is widely recognized by moviegoers due to his appearances in some of the most popular movies from his generation and beyond.
His portrayal of ‘Iceman’ in “Top Gun” alongside Tom Cruise in 1986 was a major breakthrough in his career. Then, He reprised his role in “Top Gun: Maverick“, the sequel that was released in 2022. In 1991, Kilmer portrayed Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone’s “The Doors“, and in 1993, he portrayed Doc Holliday in “Tombstone“, where he said the famous phrase ‘I’m your huckleberry.’
Kilmer also starred alongside Robert De Niro and Al Pacino in the heist drama “Heat“, a 1995 film that also included Jon Voight and Tom Sizemore. In an Instagram post, Michael Mann, the director of “Heat,“ expressed his admiration for Val’s character’s range and brilliant variability during his time working with him.
The actor, who participated in Suzuki arts training through the Method branch, engaged himself in roles. In the final scene of “Tombstone,” he simulated the feeling of dying from tuberculosis by filling his bed with ice for his character Doc Holliday. To play Morrison, he wore leather pants all the time, asked castmates and crew to only refer to him as Jim Morrison and blasted The Doors for a year. Kilmer was known to be difficult to work with due to his intensity, which he grudgingly accepted later in life. “I had been deemed difficult and alienated the head of every major studio,” he wrote in his memoir, according to the New York Times Magazine.
He disclosed in 2017 that he was getting better from throat cancer, and in 2021, People magazine reported that the actor had had a permanent damage to his speaking voice following a tracheostomy. The actor wrote on his website in 2022 that communicating and being understood is a challenge, discussing the effects of his cancer treatment. I am making progress, but I am unable to be out in the world like I had become accustomed to.
Tributes poured in for Kilmer after the news of his death. “See ya, pal. I’m going to miss you. You were a smart, challenging, brave, uber-creative firecracker,” actor Josh Brolin wrote on Instagram alongside a photo of him and Kilmer. “There’s not a lot left of those. I hope to see you up there in the heavens when I eventually get there. Until then, amazing memories, lovely thoughts.”
Francis Ford Coppola, who directed Kilmer in 2011’s “Twixt,” said Kilmer was the “most talented actor when in his High School, and that talent only grew greater throughout his life.” “He was a wonderful person to work with and a joy to know — I will always remember him,” Coppola wrote on Instagram.
In 2021, his life was chronicled in a documentary called “Val“. The actor’s voice was provided by his son, who recorded hundreds of hours of video over the years, and the film showcased his introspective thinking and artist’s soul.
Kilmer married actor Joanne Whalley in 1988. The pair divorced but had two children, son Jack and daughter Mercedes.