AI Val Kilmer to Star in As Deep As the Grave

"It was very much designed around him. It drew on his Native American heritage and his ties to and love of the Southwest. The film will feature a "significant" amount of AI Kilmer as it tackles various stages of his character's life, from young to old, and will even reconstruct his voice, which was damaged after a tracheal procedure."

"He always looked at emerging technologies with optimism as a tool to expand the possibilities of storytelling. This spirit is something that we are all honoring within this specific film, of which he was an integral part."

"I'm all about working with our actors. But we can't roll camera again ... We're not a big studio film. So we had to think of innovative ways to do it. And we realized the technology is there for us."

Filmmaker Coerte Voorhees cast Val Kilmer as Father Fintan in the drama As Deep As the Grave years before the actor's death from throat cancer. Unable to recast due to budget constraints and the role's integral design around Kilmer's Native American heritage and Southwest connections, Voorhees obtained explicit permission from Kilmer's estate and daughter Mercedes to use AI technology to complete the film. The production will feature a significant amount of AI Kilmer portraying various life stages of his character and will reconstruct his voice, which was damaged after a tracheal procedure. Kilmer's family supported the decision, viewing emerging technologies as tools to expand storytelling possibilities. The film also stars Abigail Lawrie, Wes Studi, Tom Felton, and Abigail Breslin.

Read at Vulture