In the approximately one and a half minute trailer, the AI-generated version of Val Kilmer appears on the screen several times. In this way, different periods of the character’s life are shown: from his young self in his 30s to his older version with an almost ghostly appearance, there are various age stages.
In the film, Val Kilmer’s appearance is used to portray the character of Father Fintan, a Catholic and spiritualist Native American priest. The filmmakers recreated not only the actor’s appearance but also his voice. In the last scene of the trailer, he can be seen saying to a little girl, “Don’t be afraid of the dead or me.”
Val Kilmer’s screen presence in As Deep as the Grave is impressive in every way. Their short scenes seem technically quite flawless; However, the quality of the final result will also depend on the duration of the scenes and the overall context of the character in the film.
From an emotional standpoint, this usage feels a bit strange. Because in many projects, films are completed after the actors die during filming, Val Kilmer did not shoot even a single scene for this film before his death.
All scenes featuring Kilmer in the film are synthetic; In other words, it was created from scratch with generative artificial intelligence, using archive images. This situation has started a new polemic amid discussions about the use of artificial intelligence in Hollywood, even with the approval of the actor’s family.
The director and screenwriter of the film is Coerte Voorhees. The story follows Ann Axtell Morris, an archaeologist known for her work in areas such as Canyon de Chelly in Arizona and the Yucatán Peninsula in the first half of the 20th century.
According to Voorhees’ statement, the role of Father Fintan was written for Val Kilmer from the beginning. However, the throat cancer the actor had in the last period of his life prevented him from taking part in the project. After Kilmer’s death in early April last year, the director met with his family and received permission to recreate his image and voice with artificial intelligence, thus allowing him to appear in the film.
Although the film attracted great attention thanks to the “bringing back” of Val Kilmer with artificial intelligence, there are other well-known names in its cast: Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy in Harry Potter), Abigail Lawrie, Abigail Breslin (Little Miss Sunshine, Zombieland) and Finn Jones (Iron Fist).
The production, whose shooting started in late 2020, experienced various delays due to the pandemic. Currently, the movie As Deep as the Grave does not have an official release date.
