Val Kilmer Returned to His Batman Role 5 Weeks Before His Death

Just weeks before his death at the age of 65, Val Kilmer wore the Batman mask a final time.

Kilmer, who played Bruce Wayne in 1995’s Batman Forever, died of pneumonia on Tuesday, April 1, his daughter, Mercedes Kilmer, confirmed.

In a post shared to Instagram just five weeks earlier, the Hollywood star transformed into the Caped Crusader a final time. The video, uploaded on Feb. 23, marked one of Kilmer’s final social media posts and showed the actor sitting in a room with artist and musician David Choe alongside a painting of Batman. In the clip, Kilmer declared “I’m ready” before he put on a Batman mask, telling Choe that “it’s been awhile.” Choe chimed in to tell the star, “You look great.”

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Following news of his passing, the post has transformed into a place where fans are paying tribute to the actor. In the comments section, one person wrote, “am heartbroken that you are no longer with us, Val. I pray you are resting in peace.” Another person wrote, “he best of all time! Rest in peace! Legend!” Somebody else commented, “Rip you will be missed thank you for being my childhood hero love you batman,” as another person said, “Forever my Batman rest in peace.”

While Kilmer made his acting debut on stage before making his film debut in 1984’s Top Secret, he is best remembered for his portrayal of the Caped Crusader in Batman Forever. He starred in the Joel Schumacher film alongside Jim Carrey, Nicole Kidman, Tommy Lee Jones and Chris O’Donnell, taking over the role of Bruce Wayne/Batman from Michael Keaton. George Clooney replaced him for 1997’s Batman & Robin.

“Everything was different about this job than I’d experienced before,” Kilmer told Entertainment Tonight in 1995 of the role. “The size of the character and how strange it was that Michael Keaton had decided not to do it — I just said yes, without reading the script.”

Outside of Batman, Kilmer is also well-remembered for his starring roles in Top Gun, Real Genius, The Saint, and The Prince of Egypt, among numerous others. His final film appearance was opposite Tom Cruise in 2022’s Top Gun: Maverick.

The actor, who was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014 and later recovered, is survived by his daughter Mercedes and son Jack.