# RIP Val Kilmer **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [April 2, 2025, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494 "2025-04-02T04:16:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 10:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/21 "2025-04-02T10:07:39Z")
> [@outlierrn](#): > > And Christian Scientists, I suppose, although I don’t know where he was with that these days. He was still a Christian Scientist to the end, AFAIK. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 10:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/22 "2025-04-02T10:40:34Z")
Just two days ago I was asked by my pharmacy if I wanted a pneumonia vaccine. Kind of a wake up call I should say yes. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 12:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/23 "2025-04-02T12:08:35Z")
> [@Baker](#): > > > [@ParallelLines](#): > > > > I guess I’ll put Willow on tomorrow one more time… > > I loved that movie. Not just for Kilmer, it was the first film I saw with Warwick Davis. He reunited with Davis on “Life’s Too Short,” in full self-parody mode. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/24 "2025-04-02T12:42:32Z")
Let’s just take a step back. No, I was wrong, I’m sorry, take a step forward. Now, take a step back. Step forward. Back. And then we’re cha-cha-ing! ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/25 "2025-04-02T13:05:35Z")
I had my then-12-year-old kid watch _Real Genius,_ two years ago. It held up quite well. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/26 "2025-04-02T13:08:56Z")
i did like his take on batman. real genius was my first val kilmer film. so fun and so good. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/27 "2025-04-02T13:14:02Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > If you watch _Top Gun: Maverick_, he appears briefly and his character is dealing with a terrible illness and can barely speak. Kilmer didn’t actually speak at all, they used AI to recreate his voice. [How Did Val Kilmer Get His Voice Back for One Final Scene in Top Gun: Maverick With Tom Cruise? Find Out As He Passes Away at 65 | PINKVILLA](https://www.pinkvilla.com/entertainment/hollywood/how-did-val-kilmer-get-his-voice-back-for-one-final-scene-in-top-gun-maverick-with-tom-cruise-find-out-as-he-passes-away-at-65-1380331) ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/28 "2025-04-02T13:16:00Z")
Damn, I just watched Tombstone last weekend. His Doc Holliday steals the movie - “That’s Latin, darlin. Evidently Mr. Ringo is an educated man. Now I really hate him.” And the scene with Wyatt visiting him in the sanitarium is really sad now. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/29 "2025-04-02T13:19:20Z")
> [@icon](#): > > He also had a small role in Heat as well which is mostly forgotten since it is dominated by Pacino and De Niro. I wouldn’t call that a small role. He was the third-billed actor in the cast, with plenty of screen time and possibly the most poignant scene in the movie (when he comes home to his wife at the end, realizes that the cops are waiting for him, and drives off). ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/30 "2025-04-02T13:21:44Z")
He was awesome. Every time I think someone above has named my favorite move, another one comes along and I just can’t possibly choose. May he rest in peace. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/31 "2025-04-02T13:42:36Z")
I always had trouble mixing up Val Kilmer and the guy that killed Apollo Creed (Dolph Lundgren). Both actors were extremely muscular with crew cuts. I do remember Val was great as Maverick’s rival in Top Gun. RIP ---
**Author:** ![veryfrank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/87869e/32.png) [@veryfrank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/veryfrank)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/32 "2025-04-02T13:44:06Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > He was still a Christian Scientist to the end, AFAIK. One article I read said he was a Ran Paul supporter who lobbied for religious exemptions for Covid vaccines. Reading that put a sad caveat on my fond memories. The first I’d heard he was sick was when I watched the bonus features on the more recent BluRay reissue of _Heat_. There’s a film festival panel starring much of the cast, moderated by Christopher Nolan, and Kilmer sounded like Daffy Duck when he spoke. Googling explained about the cancer. The weirdest post-cancer role he had was as a villain in the little-seen _The Snowman_, in which not only do we never really see his face, his voice was also dubbed, but I guess he got a trip to Norway out of it. Still…despite the flaws in the film, _The Doors_ is still a monumental performance. _Top Secret!_ remains one of the funniest comedies of the 80s. His cameo in _True Romance_ is still a showstopper. And _Kill Me Again_ is a really wonderful neo-noir and he’s great in it. A lotta good stuff in his filmography. ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/33 "2025-04-02T13:57:32Z")
Let me know if there is any change in his condition. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/34 "2025-04-02T14:15:27Z")
**The Saint** was one of his strongest roles not mentioned. I never cared for the original so his reimagining was welcome. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/35 "2025-04-02T14:47:37Z")
> [@veryfrank](#): > > One article I read said he was a Ran Paul supporter who lobbied for religious exemptions for Covid vaccines While he did campaign for religious exceptions to laws (also ACA), AFAIK he was a lifelong Democrat or Green supporter in all other ways. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/36 "2025-04-02T14:48:44Z")
> [@Si\_Amigo](#): > > I thought he did a very good Jim Morrison in The Doors movie and was impressed that he did his own singing. IIRC, he also did his character’s singing in _Top Secret!_, in which he essentially played Elvis, if Elvis was in a mashup of a spy movie and a WWII movie. 😃 [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/PKRfFEa9PGE/hqdefault.jpg?sqp=-oaymwEmCOADEOgC8quKqQMa8AEB-AG-AoAC8AGKAgwIABABGGUgWChLMA8=&rs=AOn4CLCcQYc8X9ZvNcSfLcE8rJAhmfeTWQ "Top Secret Tutti Frutti") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKRfFEa9PGE) ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/37 "2025-04-02T14:50:54Z")
> **[Doc Holliday vs Johnny Ringo from Tombstone.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GGNdnlCbfMs%2F)** > > You can buy Tombstone here. http://amzn.to/219CEpdCurly Bill: \[takes a bill with Wyatt's signature from a customer and throws it on the faro table\] Wyatt Ear... ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/38 "2025-04-02T14:50:56Z")
I just watched a vid on _Real Genius_ yesterday. Chris Knight was great. Apparently he developed a reputation for being difficult to work with, which didn’t really derail his career. The cancer did that. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/39 "2025-04-02T14:58:11Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Apparently he developed a reputation for being difficult to work with, which didn’t really derail his career. Years ago (before his health issues), I read an article about Kilmer, in which a parallel was drawn between him and Marlon Brando: both were extremely talented and versatile actors, who felt pigeon-holed due to their good looks, and became increasingly dissatisfied with their careers as a result. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2025, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494/40 "2025-04-02T15:00:56Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Who will be our huckleberry now? My Facebook bio lists my profession as “I’m your huckleberry at law firm” But I can’t fill his shoes. (Although I’ve _heard_ that he actually says “I’m your huckle bearer”, a huckle referring to the handles on a casket. Urban Dictionary says that’s nonsense) Real Genius is on my short list of favorite movies. Top Secret is the funniest movie most people have never seen. And nobody was cooler than Ice in Top Gun when he did that bite thing. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/TRXDz65WyEw/maxresdefault.jpg "Tom Cruise, Val Kilmer in Top gun -i am dangerous") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TRXDz65WyEw) Kilmer also deserved an Oscar for The Doors. He sang so good the original band couldn’t tell the difference. Definitely one of my favorite actors. And anybody who once dared Cher was undoubtedly charming in real life. Sad to have gotten so sick, and sad to have died so soon. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rip-val-kilmer/1016494.md?page=3)