To read more of GQ's coverage of Val Kilmer through the years, click here.
Val Kilmer, the ‘80s and ’90s Hollywood mainstay best known for his parts in Top Gun and Heat, along with cult classics of the era such as The Doors, Willow and Tombstone, died from pneumonia on 1 April at the age of 65. His passing follows a period of illness that began in 2015, after he was diagnosed with throat cancer, a chapter of his life covered in detail in the acclaimed 2021 documentary Val. The actor's final screen appearance came in 2022, with his somber swansong cameo in Top Gun: Maverick as Iceman, the long-time rival-turned-ally of Tom Cruise's Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, a touching moment that has taken on new poignancy in the wake of his passing.
But for a whole generation of movie fans, one role will stand out far more than others—when he took over from Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne in 1995's Batman Forever. Not that this has always been for the better, as the sense that has long lingered around the film is one of infamy: though not quite considered the consensus low-point of George Clooney's Batman and Robin, it pursued a wildly divergent tone from Tim Burton's acclaimed double-header of pitch-black takes on the Dark Knight, being variously vivid, bizarre and, well, batshit. It was controversial at the time; its 33 per cent audience score on Rotten Tomatoes suggests that it remains a bit of a sticking point. Nevertheless, there are fans online who will defend it to the death—and deservedly so.
In the age of superhero movies that almost all try to strike for the same dreary tone of self-seriousness, Forever sticks out for its fun and unashamed flamboyance. It's a colorful fever dream whose most exciting features have long been misdiagnosed as bugs: Tommy Lee Jones and Jim Carrey doing what can only be described as the most as vibrant villains Two-Face and The Riddler; director Joel Schumacher's cheeky shots of homoeroticism (see: the suit nips); and, come on, who in their right mind wouldn't be super into its punky funfair aesthetic?
Audiences might not have been ready for it all in the mid-90s, but the film’s outré style has aged well over the decades, as superhero movies have become all the more dour. It has aged even better against the backdrop of Marvel's recent sludgefests—which are, by contrast, about as colorful and visually engaging as TV static. And Kilmer has endured as one of the greatest actors to take on the Caped Crusader.
In his 1992 review of Thunderheart, film critic Roger Ebert wrote of the actor that, “If there is an award for the most unsung leading man of his generation, Kilmer should get it,” a sentiment that was rarely better epitomized than by his stint in the Batsuit. For one, he is by far the hottest Batman, with a jawline like the gigachad meme and those alluring Notting Hill-era Hugh Grant sadboi glasses. As to his performance, he embodies both the Wayne and Batman personas with a magnetic gravitas that stands in contrast to Forever's wild tone. Like light and shade, it's a complimentary combination: his performance keeps the movie just grounded enough for it not to feel like throwaway schlock, while enabling Lee Jones and Carrey to go full wacko.
In a crowded field of Batmen, it's a tremendous turn for which the actor has taken far too long to get his flowers. It'll surely happen in the wake of his passing—but the truth is that Kilmer was always killer.
This story originally appeared in British GQ.