Sooner or later the question was going to arise. It was up to Val Kilmerbut it could be any other person generated by Artificial Intelligence. Well, here goes: Can an AI-generated Val Kilmer win the Oscar?
The hyperrealistic recreation that they have made of the actor who It was Jim Morrison in The DoorsBatman and even Simon Templar in a very poor movie The Sainthas already raised anger and suspicion. Because it’s not about what they did with Paul Walker, the interpreter of Fast and furiouswho died in an accident and they “reconstructed” his character Brian O’Conner in the saga.
They did it, yes, from a combination of CGI (computer generated images) and the performance of their brothers Caleb and Cody Walker as body doubles, and they even resorted to the reuse of archive images from films previous to that seventh film of the Rapid.
Val Kilmer wanted to shoot the film: illness prevented him from doing so
The film in question is As Deep as the Grave (Deep as the grave is the literal translation), a western in which several years ago Kilmer was going to participate, but his illness – throat cancer – caused the project to fall through.. The year was 2020, and Kilmer was offered to be Father Fintan, a real-life Catholic priest who served at the San Juan Mission in Farmington, New Mexico, in the early 20th century.
“We are putting a lot of care into achieving a magnificent, award-worthy performance,” the director said. Photos First Line FilmsSo of the flesh and blood actor, there are no frames in the film. We don’t see the actor top gun and Super secret playing the story’s co-protagonist priest.
And how did they do it?
Before his passing in 2025, Kilmer spoke with his children, Jack and Mercedes, about the possibility of using generative AI technologies to enable posthumous film appearances.
The film digitally recreates the actor who died in 2025. In the photo, AI’s Kilmer on screen in Las Vegas. AP PhotoAI-generated version of the actor was created thanks to images of Kilmer when he was young and even from his later years. This is how they show the priest at different times in his life. Where did they get the images from? The family provided all the footage.
How Val Kilmer appears
In the trailer that was seen at CinemaCon in Las Vegas this week, the figure of Kilmer – because let’s agree that it is not Val Kilmer – appears several times. At times he is a young priest, with a cute face, and at other times he is like a ghost, a spectral, almost ghostly figure.
“Don’t fear the dead and don’t fear me,” AI’s Kilmer tells a girl at one point, kneeling to look her directly in the eyes.
Youngster. A thirty-something Val Kilmer, and a priest, as will be seen in the film.And how does he speak?
Regarding the audio, They used the actor’s voice, which had been affected by the various surgical interventions he had, including a tracheotomy.. John Voorhees, producer of the film and brother of director Coerte, was clear: “The character in the film suffers from tuberculosis. This historical character reflected Val’s real condition when he suffered from throat cancer. Therefore, as far as the voice is concerned, it is a unique opportunity for the character to reflect the illness that the actor suffered, thus creating a kind of connection,” he tried to explain.
The truth is that the Coerte brothers and John Voorhees (if you read quickly, they almost pronounce Borges) already speculate with present Kilmer’s “performance” to the Hollywood Academy as a pair to be nominated for the Oscar for best actor.
Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy in “Harry Potter”) and Abigail Lawrie, the married couple who star in the western.In fact, The character with Kilmer’s face is on screen for 77% of the duration of the film. Anthony Hopkins won his first Oscar as a leading actor for The silence of the innocentand Hannibal Lecter is not on screen for more than 25 minutes…
To do this, they will first have to find someone to release the film – they do not yet have a distributor – which, despite being independent, has in its cast the BAFTA winner, Abigail Lawrie, as Ann, and Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy in the saga of harry potter) like her husband, Earl. Wes Studi also stars, alongside Abigail Breslin.
On the way to the Oscar?
Kilmer, the real one, was never nominated for an Oscar despite the fact that he had performances that could have deserved a candidacy, as in The Doors. “I think the character will speak for itself,” director Coerte Voorhees diplomatically commented. “We’ll let it speak for itself and let the public decide.”
“Don’t fear the dead and don’t fear me,” the AI Kilmer tells a girl at one point in the trailer.“We are putting a lot of care and attention into achieving a magnificent performance, worthy of awards”added his brother John. Both have already suggested that the Academy consider adopting what is done with AI, as has SAG-AFTRA (the performers union), which approved Kilmer’s “participation” in the film after the filmmakers demonstrated that they met the established requirements.
“We thank SAG for approving our process and we take it very seriously,” said Coerte Voorhees.
What is the movie about?
Inspired by the lives of archaeologists Ann and Earl Morris, As Deep as the Grave It is based on his explorations in Canyon de Chelly, Arizona, an area of the Navajo people. After the couple becomes fascinated by a lost city that, according to legend, existed in the Chuska Mountains, they turn to Father Fintan to help them in their search.
Val Kilmer, in “Top Gun.” During the presentation, the Voorhees brothers were responsible for clarifying that it was the story that “connected” with Kilmer, who had a fascination with the American Southwest and the indigenous communities that inhabited it. “I really wanted to play this role,” the director recalled.
But can he win an Oscar for best actor?
Voters are unlikely to be willing to give an award for best performer to a computer image. It would be better if they tried to position the film in the category best visual effects. Maybe they would have better luck.
