Featured Image Credit: Barry King/WireImage via Getty Images
Topics: Val Kilmer, Celebrity, Cher
Gerrard Kaonga
Topics: Val Kilmer, Celebrity, Cher
Cher has shared a sweet tribute to her ex Val Kilmer after it was confirmed that he had passed away.
Kilmer’s daughter, Mercedes, spoke to the New York Times and confirmed that her father had died aged 65 on April 1.
Since then fans of the actor, most known for his role as Batman and Iceman in the Top Gun franchise, have taken to social media to pay their respects.
Kilmer’s last acting role was a cameo in 2022’s Top Gun: Maverick and his real-life health issues were worked into the script.
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He had been diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014 and underwent both radiotherapy and chemotherapy, as well as a tracheostomy, which damaged his vocal cords.
This meant that in the film, Kilmer didn’t really speak and AI was used to recreate his dialogue due to irreparable damage to his voice.
Despite Kilmer being diagnosed after him and singer Cher had broken up, she reportedly supported him throughout his treatment.
The pair met in the early 1980s at a birthday party and went on to fall in love, dating from 1982 to 1984.
Cher recently took to Twitter to post a tribute to the actor following the news of his death.
She wrote: "VALUS
"Will miss u, U Were Funny, crazy, pain in the a**, GREAT FRIEND, kids [heart] U.
"BRILLIANT as Mark Twain.
"BRAVE here during ur sickness."
Last year, Cher got candid about her relationship with the Kilmer and confessed she was ‘madly in love’ with the star.
Speaking on the Howard Stern Show in November, she was asked about her previous partners as the host questioned why they would ever leave her.
Cher replied: “Sometimes you only stay, sometimes, you're only meant to stay with someone so long and Val was like, he was really young.”
In previous interviews, she has also spoken about the 13-year age gap between herself and the younger Kilmer.
In 2021, Cher told People: "We became friends because we laughed at the same things constantly. He would sleep over and it was just a friendship [at first].
"The truth was if I hadn't gone out with younger men, I would have never had a date.
"Younger men weren't intimidated by older women."
She also insisted they had a brilliant and unique dynamic even though their relationship didn't end up working out.
Cher added: "And he was so beautiful. It went from madly in love and laughing hysterically to respecting each other's ability."