1 day Ago By [email protected] (Lucy Needham)
Top Gun legend Val Kilmer has died at the age of 65. The sad news was shared by Kilmer’s daughter Mercedes who told the New York Times the actor had died from pneumonia. He rose to fame starring alongside Tom Cruise in the 1986 hit Top Gun playing Iceman, a rival pilot to Cruise’s character, Maverick.
Kilmer’s Top Gun character famously told Cruise’s Maverick: “You can be my wingman any time.” He would go on to play Batman in 1995’s Batman Forever and received critical acclaim for his portrayal of musician Jim Morrison in the 1991 film The Doors. His final acting role was a cameo in the 2022 blockbuster sequel Top Gun: Maverick.
Tom Cruise opened up about their reunion - which turned out to be one of the last times they saw each other. “I just want to say that was pretty emotional,” Cruise told Jimmy Kimmel in 2023 about the cameo. “I’ve known Val for decades, and for him to come back and play that character.
.. he’s such a powerful actor that he instantly became that character again.
"I was crying, I was crying. I got emotional," Cruise told Kimmel. "He's such a brilliant actor, I love his work.
" The moment meant just as much to Kilmer, speaking to the LA Times, the actor said proudly he still gets “hundreds of fan letters every week,” about the movie and described the response to his appearance in Maverick as “very humbling”. Director Joseph Kosinski says Cruise and Kilmer had “tears in their eyes" as they shot Iceman's farewell. “Tom and I get along really well,” Kilmer said.
“We giggled like little kids in school between takes. I consider him a real friend. We shared intimate stories and challenges about our different lifestyles!” The return to film was a major milestone for Kilner who battled numerous gruelling health battles.
He was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014, discussing his diagnosis and recovery in his 2020 memoir, I’m Your Huckleberry and Amazon Prime Documentary Val. He underwent both radiotherapy and chemotherapy, as well as a tracheostomy, which damaged his vocal cords. “I obviously am sounding much worse than I feel,” Kilmer said in the documentary.
“I can’t speak without plugging this hole (in his throat). You have to make the choice to breathe or to eat. It’s an obstacle that is very present with whoever sees me.
” He got his big break in 1984 comedy Top Secret!, in which he also sang, and he also starred in the comedy Real Genius the following year. He married British actress Joanne Whalley in 1988, whom he met while working on the Ron Howard-directed film Willow, which also saw him star alongside Warwick Davis. The couple had two children before divorcing in 1996.
Other films he starred in included 1993 Western Tombstone, alongside Kurt Russell and Bill Paxton, and he also won praise from critics for his turns in The Salton Sea and Kiss Kiss, Bang, Bang. He also starred in Michael Mann’s 1995 crime drama Heat with Hollywood heavyweights Al Pacino and Robert De Niro. Away from the world of film, he made his West End debut in the stage version of The Postman Always Rings Twice in 2005, playing drifter Frank who starts a passionate affair with Cora, the bored wife of a roadside cafe owner.
The 1981 film featured Jack Nicholson and Jessica Lange and had a famously steamy scene on the kitchen table. Kilmer said at the time when asked how British audiences compare to Americans: “They’re smarter. They read books.
” He added: “It does seem that the standard simply keeps deteriorating on Broadway. The shows have become more Vegas-like. Theatre here just has higher standards.
” Film production company Paramount Pictures also paid tribute to Kilmer in an Instagram post alongside Paramount Home Entertainment and the official Top Gun account which said: “Remembering Val Kilmer, whose indelible cinematic mark spanned genres and generations. RIP Iceman.”.
