An upcoming drama will use artificial intelligence to bring the late Val Kilmer back to the screen, marking the latest move by Hollywood to deploy AI in recreating performers. Kilmer, who died last year at 65 from throat cancer, had been attached to “As Deep As the Grave” before his death.
The film is based on the true story of archaeologists Ann and Earl Morris, who worked alongside the Navajo people in the 1920s to uncover the Ancestral Puebloan civilization. British actor Tom Felton is cast as Earl, while BAFTA winner Abigail Lawrie will play Ann.
Oscar winner Wes Studi and Jacob Fortune-Lloyd round out the supporting cast. The production, formerly known as “Canyon Del Muerto,” has been in development since 2023.
The historical drama that became Kilmer’s last role
Kilmer was set to portray Father Fintan, a Catholic priest and Native American spiritualist. Director and writer Coerte Voorhees said he built the role specifically around Kilmer, citing the actor’s advocacy for Native American rights, his claimed Cherokee heritage and his deep connection to the American Southwest. His illness prevented him from ever reaching the set.
FIRST LOOK: Val Kilmer has been resurrected via AI to star in the new movie "As Deep as the Grave."
Kilmer was cast in the movie in 2020, five years before his death. But he was too sick amid his throat cancer battle to ever make it to set. Now an AI version of the actor is… pic.twitter.com/OjWHUdrsXn
— Variety (@Variety) March 18, 2026
Voorhees is now working with Kilmer’s estate and his daughter Mercedes to reconstruct the actor using generative AI. Son Jack, also an actor, has given his backing to the project as well.
Voorhees said the family felt the film had mattered greatly to Kilmer and that he had wanted his name on it, even with the knowledge that some would view the decision as controversial.
The AI recreation will feature in a substantial portion of the film. The production plans to use photographs taken of Kilmer across different stages of his life to portray him at varying ages.
Val Kilmer’s AI return adds to Hollywood’s debate on digital likenesses
The decision puts Val Kilmer and AI at the center of a broader conversation about how Hollywood treats the likenesses of performers.
In 2024, “The Brutalist,” directed by Brady Corbet, used AI to adjust Adrien Brody’s Hungarian accent on the way to winning the Oscar for best picture. Actors Matthew McConaughey and Michael Caine have also licensed their voices to the startup ElevenLabs for AI reproduction.
“Val,” a 2021 documentary, told Kilmer’s story through archival footage, with his son providing the narration.
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