This is what Val wanted Val Kilmers AI movie return has his familys
blessing, but it feels deeply unsettling

Date:
Thu, 19 Mar 2026 14:00:00 +0000

Description:
First Line Films has shared its first look at the AI-generated Val Kilmer character for the movie As Deep As The Grave.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Tech Radar Get the TechRadar Newsletter Sign up for
breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. You are
now subscribed Your newsletter sign-up was successful An account already exists for this email address, please log in. Subscribe to our newsletter Val Kilmer is being brought back via generative AI for an upcoming movie Director Coerte Voorhees says 'it's what Val wanted' Even Kilmer's children have
voiced their support for this, but it's still a little unsettling Late Hollywood icon Val Kilmer is about to make a posthumous big screen appearance
and its all thanks to generative AI .

As reported by Variety Kilmer, who passed in 2025, will be resurrected for
the historical action movie As Deep As The Grave directed by Coerte Voorhees, which Kilmer was cast for all the way back in 2020. However, his declining health and throat cancer diagnosis prevented him from making it to the set, but despite not having shot a single scene, Voorhees is seeking alternative ways to keep the actor at the core of the film. Using state of the art generative AI, Kilmers role in the movie will be envisioned using recorded voice samples, as well as various images of Kilmer throughout the decades to help depict the character in different stages of life. According to Voorhees, the AI-generated character will star in a significant part of the final product, and he doubled down on his creative choices when talking to Variety. Article continues below You may like I think Jia Zhangkes AI short says something interesting about AI movies Chris Pratt thinks AI could create 'a lot more movies' after new movie Mercy Why are your favorite celebs selling their voices to this AI company?

He was the actor I wanted to play this role, claims Voorhees, who added It
was very much designed around him. It drew on his Native American heritage
and his ties to and love of the Southwest. I was looking at a call sheet the other day, and we had him ready to shoot. He was just going through a really, really tough time medically, and he couldnt do it. But Voorhees hasnt done this alone. Throughout his career, Val Kilmer starred in huge Hollywood
flicks including Top Gun (1986), Batman Forever (1995), and The Doors (1991) (Image credit: Prime Video) The approval and, surprisingly positive, support from Kilmers own family also helped to spearhead the creative choice, which was backed by his daughter Mercedes and son Jack who both claim this is something their late father wouldve also supported.

He always looked at emerging technologies with optimism as a tool to expand the possibilities of storytelling, Mercedes Kilmer shared in a statement.
This spirit is something that we are all honoring within this specific film, of which he was an integral part.

The upcoming movie, which is projected for a 2026 release, is based on the true story of Southwestern archaeologists Ann and Earl Morris (Abigail Lawrie & Tom Felton) set between the 1920s and 1940s. Kilmer was cast as Catholic priest and Native American spiritualist Father Fintan, aligning with Voorhees statement above. But even though the project has overwhelming support from Kilmers family, it still doesnt sit quite right with me as a movie-goer. Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. Analysis: The uncanny valley of it all First off, when you look at the teaser image of the AI-generated Val Kilmer, it goes without saying that what has been produced
is quite impressive. The final product looks just like Kilmer, and its
evident that whatever generative AI model the production team has used has succeeded in reading the existing photos of the actor. However, the uncanny valley of it all throws me off a little.

At first glance, its just Val Kilmer, but the more time I spend examining the image, the more it just becomes even clearer that its AI-generated, and the artificial sunset in the background doesnt help either. The best comparison I can draw is to The Polar Express (2004), a movie I watched as a kid that prompted the million-dollar question: Are those real actors?

And I know what you're thinking, "What about when this is used on musicians?" For me, there's a big difference. When you attend an event like the ABBA Voyage residency in London, which uses holographic technology to bring the members of the band to life, you go into it not only knowing it's all
designed by hologram but with the intention of appreciating the technical and artistic skill it takes to create such a spectacle. What to read next Meta could make social media posting immortal and we should all cancel our Facebook accounts right now Darren Aronofskys new YouTube series uses AI
video to tell Revolutionary War stories How does AI video slop get made? I think I finally found out

This tech integration poses, perhaps, deeper questions, like how Kilmer's AI character will affect the movie-going experience.

Will Kilmers appearance prove too much of a distraction for movie-goers, as they know its AI-generated beforehand? Will it overshadow the movies message? Or will movie-goers simply look past it, and digest the character as though
it were Val Kilmer himself? Either way, you can bet that you'll have my full verdict once it's been released. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us
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