Val Kilmer
American actor (1959–2025)
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. In 1992, the film critic Roger Ebert remarked, "if there is an award for the most unsung leading man of his generation, Kilmer should get it".
Kilmer started his film career in the comedies Top Secret! (1984) and Real Genius (1985), then shifted to dramatic roles. He rose to prominence for playing Iceman in Top Gun (1986), Madmartigan in Willow (1988), Jim Morrison in The Doors (1991), Doc Holliday in Tombstone (1993), Batman / Bruce Wayne in Batman Forever (1995), and Chris Shiherlis in Heat (1995). Kilmer made his final film appearance in Top Gun: Maverick (2022), reprising his role from the original film.
Kilmer also appeared on stage, making his Broadway debut in the John Byrne working-class play The Slab Boys (1983). He also acted in productions of William Shakespeare's history play Henry IV, Part 1 (1981) and in the John Ford tragedy 'Tis Pity She's a Whore (1992), both at The Public Theater.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Val Kilmer” is american actor (1959–2025). The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Kilmer, American and actor, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “american actor (1959–2025)” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Biographical claims are most persuasive when dates, appointments and relationships can be traced to records created close to the events described. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 27, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q191084. VIAF identifies the subject as 24791493. The Library of Congress control number is n92096686. 4 of 4 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1959, 2025, 1992 and 1984.
A concise life account rarely captures disputed attribution, private networks or the changing language used to describe a career. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Read biographical claims against dates, named institutions and the cited references. Distinguish a subject’s later reputation from evidence produced during their lifetime.
- Establishing names and roles
- Building a first chronology
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Personal papers, civil or court records, institutional files and the scholarship cited by the source.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Val Kilmer”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Val Kilmer primary sources, Val Kilmer archive and Kilmer research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
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This entry incorporates text from “Val Kilmer” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.