Photo: Georges Biard / CC BY-SA 3.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Kilmer is the rare actor I'd call genuinely possessed by his roles. His Jim Morrison in The Doors still feels less like performance than channeling, and Iceman gave Top Gun its necessary chill. He carried a reputation for being difficult, but I read that as an artist who refused to coast on leading-man looks when he wanted transformation. Losing his voice to illness and still returning for that quietly devastating scene in Maverick was, to me, one of the most graceful exits in modern cinema. History will keep being kinder to him; the intensity he burned onto film doesn't fade.
Overview
Val Edward Kilmer (December 31, 1959 – April 1, 2025) was an American actor. Initially a stage actor, he later found fame as a leading man in films in a wide variety of genres, including comedies, dramas, action adventures, westerns, historical films, crime dramas, science fiction films, and fantasy films. Films in which Kilmer appeared grossed more than $3.85 billion worldwide.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Val Kilmer
- Name (Japanese)
- ヴァル・キルマー
- Reading
- ゔぁる・きるまー
- Born
- December 31, 1959 (age 66)
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Capricorn / Boar
- Origin
- Los Angeles, California, United States
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- Private
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- film actor / voice actor / television actor / stage actor / actor
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Chatsworth High School
- University
- Private
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
5. Works & records
| Category | Title | Role | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notable work | Top Gun | — | |
| Notable work | Willow | — | |
| Notable work | The Doors | — | |
| Notable work | Heat | — | |
| Notable work | Kiss Kiss Bang Bang | — |
6. Links
Film actor — see all → · Voice actor — see all → · More people from United States →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-11
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.