Val Kilmer, star of 'Top Gun' and 'Batman Forever' passes away at 65

Val Kilmer , one of the biggest movie stars of the 1980s and 1990s, has passed away at the age of 65. Reportedly, he died of pneumonia , which came after years of health issues. In his heyday, though, Kilmer enjoyed sterling success that ensures his legacy in the film industry shall remain intact.

While "Top Gun" is headlined by Tom Cruise, Kilmer's turn as nemesis "Iceman" became his first defining role. A couple years later he starred in "Willow," and then from there he went on to "The Doors" and his famed, acclaimed turn as Doc Holliday in "Tombstone" and "Heat." Oh, and he played Batman in "Batman Forever.



" Even as that role has been recast again and again, playing Bruce Wayne on the big screen remains an act of stepping into a seminal role, a piece of cultural iconography. Things did start to turn in 1996 with the fiasco "The Island of Dr. Moreau.

" The filming of that movie is infamous, and Kilmer played a part in that. This was the apex of Kilmer's reputation as being difficult to work with, remarkable given that Marlon Brando also worked on that movie (to the extent Brando's effort by that point in his career could be considered "working"). When the films stop popping, this sort of thing can diminish one's career, though Kilmer did continue to work steadily.

As reflected in his memoir and in the documentary movie "Val," Kilmer was not unaware of his reputation, and not determined to fully fight the assertions. Kilmer's star never shown as bright as it did after the mid-1990s, but he continued to work steadily for many years, including in notable movies like "Alexander," "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang," and "MacGruber." Also, he appeared in a cameo in the final episode of "Psych," which is fun, and perhaps indicative he wasn't taking himself as seriously as in his method-y movie star days.

The actor would eventually, and unfortunately, contract throat cancer, and his lifelong Christian Science beliefs assuredly played a role in complicating the treatment of that. He would eventually acquiesce to medical treatment, and would require multiple tracheotomies which severely impacted his ability to speak for the rest of his life. For his brief reprise of his role as "Iceman" in "Top Gun: Maverick," Kilmer's voice had to be digitally altered for audio legibility.

This would prove the actor's final film, a quasi-full circle bit of circumstance (even if he did work professionally before "Top Gun"). To have the kind of career where multiple roles can be bandied about as your most famous is a rare feat in Hollywood. To be able to fairly, even critically, look back and reflect upon the decisions you made in such a career is seemingly just as rare.

While "Val Kilmer" has been codified for decades at this point to wait, as such, for this moment, Val Kilmer, the person, has passed away, leaving that memory of "Val Kilmer" for us to parse and extol. Chris Morgan is a Detroit-based culture writer who has somehow managed to justify getting his BA in Film Studies. He has written about sports and entertainment across various internet platforms for years and is also the author of three books about '90s television.

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