MATINEE OF THE LIVING DEAD

Stand-in Mary Dees pulls double-duty in Saratoga.

Hollywood has a history of releasing movies featuring stars who died before the release
dates. Jean Harlow in Saratoga, James Dean in Giant, Chadwick Boseman in Ma Rainey's Black Bottom to name only three.

Most of these pictures attracted even more interest than they would have otherwise, usually due to fans wanting one last look at their idols -- or, in the case of Harlow's Saratoga, playing a game of Spot the Stand-In. (Clue: whenever the character is hiding her face or has her back to the camera.)

And soon it will be Val Kilmer's turn for a final appearance onscreen, co-starring in the appropriately-titled As Deep as the Grave, a project delayed twice, first due to covid, then to his throat cancer diagnosis.

The first still of A.I. Val in character. No need
for craft services providing coffee and bagels.

The twist? Kilmer never lived to film As Deep as the Grave. His performance will be entirely-A.I. generated, spanning several years of his character's life. Tilly Norwood, the original A.I. star-in-the-making, never made it past the promotional stage. I told you this artificial intelligence hoo-hah was moving fast!

Why not hire another actor to take his place? As writer/director Coerte Voorhees explained, it's cheaper to create a new Val Kilmer rather than hire a real live human being. Let that be a warning to greedy actors going forward: Producers can wait until you're dead before making your movie.

Amy Irving, for people who didn't get my attempt
at a joke.

Back when A.I. was known only as the initials of Steven Spielberg's wife, I remember Variety reporting the possibility of computers one day reviving dead actors, citing the dream pairing of Harrison Ford with a faux-Humphrey Bogart. 

Four decades later, the stuff that dreams are made of is more like a nightmare to many. Val Kilmer's daughter is onboard with the project, though, assuring us her dad embraced "emerging technologies with optimism as a tool to expand the possibilities of storytelling." His estate will be compensated, although likely nowhere near the amount a real live Val Kilmer would have received. Too, the Screen Actors Guild has been assured the actor's image will be used "ethically" -- which sounds way too close to "ethically sourced" cadaver fat discussed in a previous post.

Died on April 1? April Fool!

There are a couple of questions that come to mind. Like, can the promotional material read "Starring Val Kilmer" when Val Kilmer really isn't in it? Or will it be something like "Ethically Sourced Val Kilmer"? 

Suppose A.I. Val gives an award-worthy performance. Will the Academy have to create a new category, like "Best Performance by a Dead Actor", or will it fall under Animation? If this trend keeps up, will the Oscars have a "They're Back!" segment after the "In Memoriam"? 

But those dilemmas are for another time. The once-theoretical Harrison Ford/Humphrey Bogart teaming can finally come to pass. Indiana Jones and the Falcon of Malta. Star Wars, Episode X: The Search for Casablanca. Blade Runner's Big Sleep. Me, I'm looking forward to Pope Francis starring George Arliss. 

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