Val Kilmer Dies at 65: Hollywood Star Known for Batman and Jim Morrison Roles Passes Away

Val Kilmer, the famous Hollywood actor who played roles as Jim Morrison and Batman, died on Tuesday in Los Angeles. He was 65. The cause of death was pneumonia, informed his daughter, Mercedes Kilmer. Kilmer was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014 and later recovered. According to the New York Times, Kilmer made his debut in the 1984 slapstick Cold War spy-movie spoof Top Secret! In it, he starred as a crowd-pleasing, hip-shaking American singer in Berlin who was unwittingly involved in an East German plot to reunify the country.

The celebrated actor won universal acclaim for his portrayal of The Doors frontman Jim Morrison in the 1991 film The Doors. He played Bruce Wayne and Batman in Batman Forever, starring opposite Nicole Kidman. He also played the villain Iceman in Top Gun. Kilmer starred in director Ron Howard's fantasy "Willow" (1988) and married his British co-star Joanne Whalley, with whom he had two children before divorcing. One of his most challenging roles came in director Oliver Stone's "The Doors" (1991) in which he played Jim Morrison, the charismatic and ultimately doomed lead singer of the influential rock band The Doors.

His other memorable role came in director Michael Mann’s crime classic Heat, which also featured Al Pacino and Robert De Niro. A follow-up to Heat has been in the works for several years, with Mann confirming only a few days ago that he has submitted a screenplay to the studio.