Val Kilmer Stars Posthumously in AI-Generated Film With Family’s Backing
AI’s role in Hollywood has reached a new milestone, as late actor Val Kilmer appears in over an hour of completed footage in the upcoming film As Deep as the Grave. According to CBS News, the performance was created using advanced generative AI, built from archival material provided by his family and produced under SAG-AFTRA guidelines, with compensation paid to his estate.
A Role Recreated Through AI
Kilmer, who passed away in April 2025 at the age of 65, had originally been cast as Father Fintan—a Catholic priest and Native American spiritualist—five years before his death. However, complications from throat cancer prevented him from filming any scenes. Rather than recast the role, director Coerte Voorhees chose to reconstruct Kilmer’s performance digitally.
The production combined archival images from different stages of Kilmer’s life with audio recordings from his later years. His voice—altered after a tracheotomy—was intentionally retained, aligning with the character’s illness in the film. The result is a performance that spans multiple ages, from a younger version of the character to a spectral presence.
The film’s trailer debuted at CinemaCon in Las Vegas on April 15, 2026, and features a cast that includes Tom Felton, Abigail Lawrie, Abigail Breslin, and Wes Studi.
Family Support and Ethical Framing
Kilmer’s children, Mercedes Kilmer and Jack Kilmer, supported the project, with Mercedes actively contributing archival material and granting legal authorization. The estate was compensated in accordance with union requirements.
In a statement, Mercedes said her father “always looked at emerging technologies with optimism as a tool to expand the possibilities of storytelling.” Kilmer himself had previously embraced AI-assisted voice recreation for Top Gun: Maverick, where his dialogue was reconstructed using archival recordings after his illness affected his speech.
Renewed Debate Around AI in Film
Despite the family’s approval, the project has reignited ethical debates within the industry. Negotiations during recent SAG-AFTRA strikes in 2023 and 2024 focused heavily on preventing unauthorized digital replication of actors and ensuring fair compensation.
While the production maintains it meets both consent and compensation standards, critics argue that family-approved recreations could set precedents for more ambiguous cases. Addressing the concerns, Voorhees stated, “Despite the fact some people might call it controversial, this is what Val wanted.”
What It Means for AI in Entertainment
The film marks a turning point in how generative AI is applied in high-stakes creative industries. As AI-generated performances become more sophisticated, cases like this help define the boundaries of responsible use—balancing innovation with consent, compensation, and artistic integrity.
Beyond Hollywood, such developments are likely to influence how AI is regulated across sectors, from media and entertainment to finance and healthcare, where similar questions around trust, authorship, and accountability are rapidly emerging.
