Val Kilmer AI dispute
Filmmakers defended using an AI-generated performance of the late Val Kilmer in As Deep as the Grave, saying they had consent from Kilmer’s children and followed SAG‑AFTRA guidance. The defence has sparked public backlash and a broader debate about consent and synthetic performances in film. (the-independent.com) (tribune.com.pk) (abc.net.au)
Filmmakers behind *As Deep as the Grave* are defending their use of an artificial intelligence-generated Val Kilmer after the trailer drew immediate backlash online. (abc.net.au) The first footage debuted at CinemaCon in Las Vegas on April 15, 2026, with Kilmer appearing as Father Fintan, a Catholic priest and Native American spiritualist in the historical drama. Director Coerte Voorhees and producer John Voorhees said they built the role from archival footage, photos and voice recordings. (abcnews.go.com) (abc.net.au) The brothers said Kilmer had signed on to the film years earlier, but poor health kept him from set, so they shot the movie without the character instead of recasting him. They said Kilmer’s children, Mercedes and Jack, approved the digital recreation, and the estate was paid and supplied archival material. (abc.net.au) (abcnews.go.com) The dispute lands in a film business still arguing over “digital replicas,” the industry term for an AI-made version of a performer’s face or voice. Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists says those uses require consent before creation, informed consent before use, and payment when a replica generates a performance. (sagaftra.org) Those rules became a central labor issue after the 2023 Hollywood strikes, and newer SAG-AFTRA agreements added written-consent and compensation terms for AI uses. A 2025 commercials deal, for example, added 48-hour notice requirements and separate signed consent for digital replicas. (dlapiper.com) (sagaftra.org) Voorhees said he would not call the result a Val Kilmer performance, saying instead that “Val Kilmer influenced this performance.” John Voorhees said the production followed what he described as three principles from the union: consent, compensation and collaboration. (abcnews.go.com) Critics online have called the footage “terrifying” and “disgusting,” according to ABC’s report, while the filmmakers argue the project shows one model for posthumous AI use with family approval. The trailer’s release turned a niche labor and ethics question into a public one: who gets to authorize a dead actor’s next role. (abc.net.au) Kilmer had his own history with the technology before his death on April 1, 2025, at 65. After throat cancer treatment and two tracheotomies damaged his natural voice, he used AI voice tools, and his voice was also digitally altered for *Top Gun: Maverick*. (abc.net.au) (cbsnews.com) Now the film is set to test whether legal permission and family support are enough to settle the question for audiences. The answer may matter well beyond one indie movie. (abc.net.au)
