The death of Val Kilmer at age 65 has put a spotlight on not only the actor's long career in Hollywood, but also his health.
Kilmer's death was confirmed by his daughter Mercedes, who said he died April 1 in Los Angeles surrounded by family and friends, according to The Associated Press.
Kilmer, a graduate of the Juilliard School's drama division, began his career as a theater actor in off-Broadway plays before finding major Hollywood fame when he landed the role of Tom "Iceman" Kazansky in the 1986 aviator blockbuster "Top Gun," alongside Tom Cruise.
He would go onto star in Hollywood classics including "Batman Forever," "The Doors" and "Tombstone."
In interviews later in his career, Kilmer spoke out about the health issues he faced along the way and how he continued acting.
Here is what to know.
Kilmer died from pneumonia, according to the AP.
Actor Val Kilmer, star of 'Batman Forever' and 'The Doors,' dies at 65Pneumonia is a lung infection commonly caused by bacteria or viruses, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Kilmer was diagnosed with throat cancer nearly a decade before his death.
Following his diagnosis, Kilmer underwent a tracheotomy, a surgical procedure that creates an opening in the front of the neck to access the trachea, or windpipe, directly, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Actor Val Kilmer opens up about his battle with cancer and past relationships in new memoirAfter the procedure, Kilmer lived the rest of his life with a tracheostomy tube, or trach, going through the hole in his neck to his trachea to help him breathe.
Kilmer opened up about throat cancer diagnosis in a 2017 interview with The Hollywood Reporter, confirming he underwent chemotherapy to fight the disease.
The actor said the ordeal had strengthened his faith and changed his priorities in life.
"I was too serious," he said at the time. "I'd get upset when things like Oscars and recognition failed to come my way."
In an interview with "Good Morning America" in 2020, Klimer acknowledged that he sounded different due to his trach, but said he was continuing to work and talk.
"It's just like any other language or dialect," he said of learning to speak with his trach. "You have to figure out a way to communicate that's no different than any other acting challenge but it's just a very unique set of circumstances."
In the interview, Kilmer was promoting the movie "Paydirt," which marked not only his return to the big screen, but also his first time co-starring along his daughter, Mercedes Kilmer, who also plays his daughter in the film.
"Playing his daughter was so trippy and perfect," Mercedes Kilmer, then 28, told "GMA." "I'm so proud to have been in this film and to have worked on this film, like, not just because my dad is my actual dad, but because -- I know you don't really lead with this -- but you do have now a disability with your voice, and it really meant a lot to me to be able to be involved in this film that centers a disabled actor, or an actor with a disability."
Mercedes Kilmer and her brother Jack Kilmer both joined their dad in working on "Val," a documentary about his life that premiered in 2021.
The documentary was narrated by Jack Kilmer, who stepped into speak for his dad at a time when it was difficult for him.
"Now that it's more difficult to speak, I want to tell my story more than ever," Val Kilmer says in the documentary, according to the AP.
In the documentary, Val Kilmer describes his life as "magical" and reflects on its ups and downs.
"I have behaved poorly. I have behaved bravely. I have behaved bizarrely to some. I deny none of this and have no regrets, because I have lost and found parts of myself that I never knew existed -- and I am blessed," he says, according to the AP.
