Featured Image Credit: Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic
Topics: Val Kilmer, Film and TV
Callum Jones
Val Kilmer is set to feature in an upcoming movie release a year on from his death aged 65.
The actor was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014, and opened up about his diagnosis and recovery in a 2020 memoir.
Kilmer’s daughter Mercedes told the New York Times in April last year that the Batman and Top Gun star had died from pneumonia.
Prior to his passing, Kilmer was set to play a key role in the drama As Deep as the Grave, in which he was due to fill the role of catholic priest Father Fintan.
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The part was specifically written for Kilmer, though he was unfortunately unable to be involved in filming due to his ongoing battle with throat cancer.
Coerte Voorhees, writer and director on As Deep as the Grave, told Variety: "He was the actor I wanted to play this role. It was very much designed around him. It drew on his Native American heritage and his ties to and love of the Southwest.
"I was looking at a call sheet the other day, and we had him ready to shoot. He was just going through a really, really tough time medically, and he couldn’t do it."
While Kilmer didn't shoot a single scene for the upcoming drama, he will appear in the movie through the use of generative AI, which has been created in collaboration with the late actor's family.
Voorhees continued: "His family kept saying how important they thought the movie was and that Val really wanted to be a part of this. He really thought it was important story that he wanted his name on. It was that support that gave me the confidence to say, okay let’s do this. Despite the fact some people might call it controversial, this is what Val wanted."
The true story follows archaeologists Ann and Earl Morris who look into the history of Navajo people in Canyon de Chelly, which is found in Arizona.
Abigail Lawrie and Tom Felton are amongst the cast, while Wes Studi and Abigail Breslin also make an appearance.
John Voorhees, a producer on the upcoming movie, added: "The character in the film also suffers from tuberculosis. Again, this historical character mirrored Val’s actual condition when he was suffering from throat cancer.
"And so when it comes to the voice this is a really unique opportunity for the character to reflect the condition that the actor was actually suffering from, thus creating a kind of a bridge."