Actor Val Kilmer died in 2025, but he will be seen in an upcoming film that he did not live to make. The historical archaeological drama As Deep As the Grave will include a AI version of the actor who died at the age of 65 following throat cancer. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen studios use AI in this way, but it could be the most successful.
Director and screenwriter Coerte Voorhees revealed to Variety on Wednesday that he would use AI to bring back Kilmer’s image to play Father Fintan, a Native American priest.
As Deep As the Grave tells the true story of a couple of archaeologists who worked with the Navajo people in the 1920s to learn about America’s earliest civilizations. Voorhees says Kilmer agreed to play the role five years ago, but the actor’s struggles with throat cancer prevented him from completing the work. There is no release date for the film yet.
Hollywood actors find themselves increasingly at odds with generative AI, a technology that has quickly began to seep in almost every aspect of the entertainment industry. From writing scripts to generating digital portraits of actors’ faces and voices, AI now has the ability to reproduce performances with striking realism. In some cases, studios have gone even further, creating AI “actors” who can play without ever getting on a stage. This has raised complex questions about consent, remuneration and creative ownership, as artists grapple with the reality that their identity and craft can now be reproduced, altered or even replaced by algorithms.
These attempts have been met with stiff opposition from the SAG-AFTRA union, which represents artists, and which has launched strikes against video game companies and is currently in precarious negotiations with film and television studios. The union corporation has certain protections against generative AI following a strike that lasted more than 100 days, including requiring clear consent and fair compensation. Current negotiations would expand these protections.
A representative for SAG-AFTRA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Voorhees says Kilmer’s children approve of this AI resurrection.
“[Kilmer] has always looked optimistically at emerging technologies as a tool to expand storytelling possibilities,” his daughter, Mercedes Kilmer, said in a statement, according to Variety. “That spirit is something we all honor in this specific film, of which it was an integral part.”
