Following the News of His Death, Many Want to Know Whether Val Kilmer Smoked

Following the news that he had died at the age of 65, many are mourning the immense body of work that Val Kilmer left behind. From Heat to Tombstone, Top Gun to Batman Forever, Kilmer left an indelible mark on the movies and will be remembered for all of the work he did onscreen.

Val was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014, and following the news of his death, many wanted to know whether he smoked cigarettes at any point in his life. Here's what we know.

Val's throat cancer diagnosis left many wondering whether he had been a smoker at some point in his life, as those conditions are often linked. According to reporting in The Daily Mail, Val did indeed smoke cigarettes, and apparently started when he was just 8 years old. The outlet even shared an anecdote he once told about stealing his uncle's cigarettes and running away to a treehouse to smoke them.

Although he was first diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014, Val initially hid that diagnosis from the public. It was only after Michael Douglas, a fellow cancer survivor, revealed his diagnosis that Val decided to go public with it. In 2021, he was the central figure in a documentary about his whole life that included footage of him post-cancer diagnosis, where it became clear that he struggled to eat or speak on his own.

“My name is Val Kilmer. I’m an actor. I’ve lived a magical life, and I’ve captured quite a bit of it. I was recently diagnosed with throat cancer. I’m still struggling and recovering, and it is difficult to talk and to be understood, but I want to tell my story more than ever," his son narrated in the 2021 documentary, because Val could only speak with help from a voice box.

Val never spoke much about his smoking habit, and it's unclear whether it was connected to his throat cancer diagnosis, although studies suggest that cigarette smoking puts people at higher risk. What's clear, though, is that even after Val's diagnosis, he still felt incredibly grateful for the life he had been given and wanted to share that gratitude with the people who loved him.

Val's most recent onscreen appearance was in the blockbuster hit Top Gun: Maverick, a role he was reprising from the original film. Although this version of Ice Man had a little less swagger than Kilmer's original character, Val is undoubtedly that movie's emotional lynchpin, helping Tom Cruise's Maverick through his own journey in the film.

Following the news of his death, many have begun to reminisce about their favorite performances from Val's legendary career. He may never have won an Oscar, but Val was the kind of matinee idol that only comes along once in any given generation. He was humbled and grateful to have been as successful as he was, and he will be sorely missed by all those who loved his work.