With Val Kilmer's passing earlier this month, we wanted to take some time pay homage to the sheer breadth and depth of his career. Appearing in over 80 films, from the blockbuster (Top Gun, Tombstone, Batman Forever), to the cult classic (Real Genius, Top Secret!), to his deeply personal documentary (Val)... his talent was one for the ages. While we can't do it all justice in this li'l ol' blog post... it's a moral imperative that we try. Without further ado, let's take a spin through some of our favorite Val Kilmer quotes and characters.
Top Secret! (1984)
"Listen to me, Hillary. I'm not the first guy who fell in love with a woman that he met at a restaurant who then turned out to be the daughter of a kidnapped scientist, only to lose her to her childhood lover who she last saw on a deserted island, who then turned out fifteen years later to be the leader of the French underground."
Character: Nick Rivers, an American rock and roll singer, gets swept into an absurd espionage plot while performing in Cold War era East Germany.
Why we love it: This line manages to make fun of about a dozen spy and war film cliches in one sentence, and Kilmer's delivery is speedy and flawless.
Real Genius (1985)
Mitch: "You know, um, something strange happened to me this morning..."
Chris Knight: "Was it a dream where you see yourself standing in sort of sun-god robes on a pyramid with a thousand naked women screaming and throwing little pickles at you?"
Mitch: "Um... no."
Chris Knight: "Why am I the only one that has that dream?"
Character: Chris Knight, a genius and senior at fictional university Pacific Tech, is paired to work with a new student, Mitch, on a chemical laser project that turns out to have dangerous applications.
Why we love it: Listen, it was almost impossible to choose just one quote from Real Genius... but this non sequitur still cracks us up 40 years later, and we love how it shows a glimpse into the workings of Knight's subconscious.
Willow (1988)
"I’m really scared... no, don’t! Don’t! There’s a peck with an acorn pointed at me!"
Character: Madmartigan, the reluctant hero with a sharp tongue and a flair for getting into (and out of) trouble. Though he starts as a self-serving scoundrel, his loyalty and courage eventually shine through.
Why we love it:
Delivered dripping with sarcasm, this line perfectly captures Madmartigan at his most chaotic—tied up in a cage, humiliated, and still managing to be hilarious.
The Doors (1991)
"I am the Lizard King! I can do anything! Come on, raise your hands if you understand! Let's take a poll - how many of you people know you're alive?"
Character: Jim Morrison, the enigmatic frontman of The Doors—poet, prophet, provocateur. In Oliver Stone’s biopic, Kilmer channels Morrison with uncanny intensity, capturing both the brilliance and the madness.
Why we love it:
Pulled from Morrison’s real-life poetry, this quote is pure rock-god bravado. Kilmer delivers it with a madcap swagger that blurs the line between performance and possession. You don’t just hear this line... you feel it crawl across your skin.
Tombstone (1993)
"Why Johnny Ringo, you look like somebody just walked over your grave."
Character: Doc Holliday, a wild west gambler and gunslinger; suffering from tuberculosis, he knows his days are numbered, which makes him especially fearless and dangerous.
Why we love it: Littered with iconic one-liners, Tombstone is supremely quotable, but we especially love this moment during Doc and Johnny Ringo's final confrontation. Suggesting a premonition of death, but delivered calmly in a soft slow drawl, this chilling quote encapsulates Holliday's fatalism and genteel swagger.
Heat (1995)
"For me the sun rises and sets with her, man."
Character: Chris Shiherlis, a skilled and loyal member of Neil McCauley’s crew of professional heist men, trying to hold onto his marriage even as his criminal life pulls it apart.
Why we love it:
In a brief, tenderly delivered line describing his relationship with his wife Charlene (Ashley Judd), Kilmer lets Chris’s vulnerability shine through, adding depth to a character that could have easily be flattened out into a cliche gun-slinging criminal.
The Saint (1997)
"My name is Buro Houtenfaust. I was named for a Saint who was a very wealthy man. He had the wine, the women, the songs, the whole bit, and then inexplicably, took a vow of poverty and became a hermit. Ran off to live in the forest, in the nude."
Character: Simon Templar, a charming, chameleon-like international con artist, and master of disguises, who steals both objects and high-value secrets. Templar adopts names of different Catholic saints for each of his many identities.
Why we love it: Told (with a ridiculous accent) through one of Simon's many saint-themed alter-egos, this quote reads as humorous on the surface, but also is a bit of a self-tell... showing tension between his desires for both a life of indulgent isolation and genuine connection.
The Salton Sea (2002)
"This is the world I sought out. The land of the perpetual night party. Day swallowing night and night swallowing day. The crank compressing time like some divine piston on its awesome downstroke. We've been at this for three days... or is it four? Tweakers, lokers, slammers, coming and going, swearing eternal allegiance and undying love for one another, only to wake up after the binge and realize you wouldn't walk across the street to piss on one of them if their head was on fire. Three days. Or is it four? I know what you're thinking, but don't give up on me just yet. Just wait 'til I've told my whole story. And keep your eyes open. Nothing is as it seems."
Character: Danny Parker, a man living a false identity buried in a world of meth addicts and chaotic nightlife. But really he's Tom Van Allen... undercover and seeking revenge for the murder of his wife.
Why we love it: This quote sets tone the time-melting, drug-fueled world Danny inhabits, but hints at a different story happening underneath the haze.
Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)
Perry: Look up 'idiot' in the dictionary. You know what you'll find?"
Harry: "A picture of me?"
Perry: "No! The definition of the word idiot, which you fucking are!"
Character: Perry van Shrike, aka “Gay Perry,” a fast-talking, no-nonsense private investigator with razor-sharp wit and zero patience for idiots—which makes his partnership with Harry (Robert Downey Jr.) all the more ridiculous.
Why we love it:
This rapid-fire insult perfectly captures the dynamic between Perry and Harry—part buddy-cop, part verbal slapstick. Kilmer’s dry, hyper-articulate delivery makes the insult land hard, and loops back around to being hilarious.
Val (2021)
"I've wanted to tell a story about acting for a very long time. The place where you end, and the character begins."
Character: Val as himself, reflecting on his life as an actor and artist. Suffering from throat cancer and having difficulty speaking, his son Jack provides the voice-over for the film.
Why we love it: This extraordinary doc shows some of Kilmer's thousands of hours of personal footage, from behind the scenes of films to everyday life, exploring the boundaries between art and life in an inventive way.