But in 2015 Kilmer lost his voice to throat cancer, remembers Parade: In his 2020 memoir I'm Your Huckleberry, Kilmer joked that he has less of a frog in his throat and more of a "buffalo." He said, "Speaking, once my joy and lifeblood, has become an hourly struggle."
Sonantic, a U.K.-based software firm that uses artificial intelligence to copy voices for actors and production studios, has collaborated with actor Val Kilmer to recreate his speech using old recordings of his voice and existing footage. The process of finding his voice again through artificial intelligence is detailed in a video posted to YouTube in August 2021. In his new voice, which does indeed mimic the speech audiences are familiar with, he says: "People around me struggle to understand me when I'm talking, but despite all that, I still feel I'm the exact same person." A soul that dreams.
"But now I can express myself again, I can bring these dreams to you, and show you this part of myself once more. A part that was never truly gone, just hiding away."Kilmer's health struggles, his childhood tragedies and his ambitious career were recently documented in the acclaimed 2021 feature-length doc Val, now streaming on Amazon Prime Video. Top Gun: Maverick screened at the Cannes Film Festival to rapturous reviews, with thunderous fanfare including an air show. Though reports say audiences gave the action picture (currently sitting at a 97% on Rotten Tomatoes) a five-minute standing ovation, with audible responses throughout the picture, mainly at the groundbreaking stunt work, it's also been reported an audience-favorite scene is the "overwhelming" emotional response to the reunion of Tom Cruise and Kilmer.
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