--- title: "Fury Erupts as Val Kilmer’s Estate Announces Starring Role in AI Film Made From Beyond the Grave" description: "During an industry trade show, filmmakers showed off a trailer that featured an AI-rendered version of Val Kilmer. Fans were furious." date: "2026-04-17" modified: "2026-04-17" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/artificial-intelligence/fury-val-kilmer-role-ai-film" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "Ethics" --- # Fury Erupts as Val Kilmer’s Estate Announces Starring Role in AI Film Made From Beyond the Grave ![During an industry trade show, filmmakers showed off a trailer that featured an AI-rendered version of Val Kilmer. Fans were furious.]() *First Line Films* Hollywood actors have been [ringing the alarm bells]() over an industry that's seemingly hellbent on replacing them with AI. And the general public appears to be on their side. Last year, a talent studio [drew enormous and near-universal backlash]() after announcing the creation of an AI-generated "actress." Even recently deceased Hollywood movie stars are fair game. During an ongoing industry trade show in Las Vegas, filmmakers behind an upcoming indie film featuring an AI-rendered version of iconic actor Val Kilmer, who's set to take a prominent role in the film — despite having died from cancer at the age of 65 last year. Kilmer was initially cast as a Catholic priest and Native American spiritualist before his death, as [*Variety* reports](), but was too sick to be part of the movie. His estate stepped in, allowing the filmmakers to use generative AI to wrap up production of the film, which features the extraordinarily on-the-nose title of "As Deep as the Grave." "Don’t fear the dead and don’t fear me," the AI Kilmer tells a child in a trailer released at the trade show. A clip shared by *Variety* and [uploaded to YouTube]() shows Kilmer's face conveniently cast in shadow underneath a deep hood while riding a horse. Other scenes also appear to be making liberal use of AI, resulting in a heavily-sharpened visual style that didn't go unnoticed. "The full trailer seems AI," a commenter wrote. "Very fitting that this trailer includes a scene where a corpse is unceremoniously yanked out of the ground," another user joked. https://youtu.be/m1hwb-kB_7A The inclusion of the late actor reignited a fiery debate over the use of a celebrity's likeness following their death. We've already seen plenty of other Hollywood stars [posthumously returning to the sliver screen]() without their express consent, including Carrie Fisher, Paul Walker, and James Dean. However, generative AI has supercharged this trend, greatly [lowering the barriers to entry compared to CGI](). Even everyday users are now able to [generate videos of the dead](), using toos like OpenAI's [since-discontinued]() text-to-video app Sora. "This is truly the MOST disgusting thing I’ve ever seen," actor Jackson Rathbone, of "Twilight" fame, [tweeted]() in an expletive-laden post. "Hey SAG-AFTRA, about that strike we had..." he added, referring to the trade union Screen Actors Guild–American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, whose [members went on strike]() for 118 days in 2023 to secure protections against AI. "You owe us an explanation." Rathbone also singled out Kilmer's daughter, Mercedes, for assisting the filmmakers. "I’m sorry for your loss, but this move begs the question... are you sorry for your loss?" he wrote. "Or are you capitalizing on your father’s death for your own financial gain?" Kilmer's daughter told *Variety* in a statement that her father "always looked at emerging technologies with optimism as a tool to expand the possibilities of storytelling." Indeed, after he lost his ability to speak due to throat cancer, Kilmer [dabbled in using AI technology to clone his voice](). "This spirit is something that we are all honoring within this specific film, of which he was an integral part," she added. But given the resoundingly negative reaction the early look at the film drew online, the filmmakers still have a lot of convincing to do. "More grotesque digital necromancy," analyst JP Gownder wrote in a scathing [post on Bluesky](). **More on AI and dead actors:** [*“Alien: Romulus” Used AI to Bring Back Dead Actor*]() ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()