AI in Hollywood just crossed a new line. According to CBS News, Val Kilmer, who passed away in April 2025 at 65, appears in more than an hour of finished scenes in the upcoming film As Deep as the Grave. His performance wasn’t filmed in the usual way. It was built using advanced AI from old footage and recordings, with full approval from his family and payment made to his estate under union rules.
Kilmer had originally been cast as Father Fintan, a priest with both Catholic and Native American spiritual roots, about five years before his death. But because of serious health issues from throat cancer, he never got to shoot any scenes. Instead of replacing him, director Coerte Voorhees decided to recreate his performance digitally.
His daughter, Mercedes Kilmer, played a big role in making it happen. She provided photos and other material and supported the idea, saying her father always believed new technology could push storytelling forward. His son Jack also backed the project.
The film’s trailer was shown at CinemaCon 2026 in Las Vegas on April 15, 2026. It features Kilmer at different ages, sometimes appearing as a ghost-like figure and other times as a younger man. The cast also includes Tom Felton, Abigail Breslin, Abigail Lawrie, and Wes Studi.
To build the performance, the team used images of Kilmer from different stages of his life and audio from his later years. After his cancer treatment, his voice had changed because of a tracheotomy. The director actually chose to use that altered voice, saying it fit the character, who suffers from tuberculosis in the story.
This wasn’t Kilmer’s first time working with AI. In Top Gun: Maverick, his voice was recreated using AI after he lost his natural speaking ability. He had supported that process himself and even called it a special experience, which his family says shows he would have been open to this project too.
Still, not everyone is comfortable with this. Even with family approval and proper payment under SAG-AFTRA rules, some critics worry this could set a risky example. They argue that if studios can recreate actors this way, it might be harder to know what the actor truly wanted, especially in future cases.
The director pushed back on that criticism, saying clearly that this is something Kilmer would have wanted.
What this really shows is how fast AI is changing the film industry. It’s not just about special effects anymore. It’s about performances, identity, and who controls them. Every project like this makes AI more accepted, but it also brings more questions about limits, rules, and respect for artists.
