Tom Cruise paid tribute to Val Kilmer with a moment of silence during his speech at CinemaCon
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- Tom Cruise called for a moment of silence at CinemaCon to honor Val Kilmer, who died on Tuesday.
- Cruise and Kilmer were costars in 1986's "Top Gun" and its 2022 sequel "Top Gun: Maverick."
- "Thank you, Val. I wish you well on your next journey," the "Mission Impossible" actor said.
Tom Cruise honored his late "Top Gun" costar, Val Kilmer, during a speech at CinemaCon on Thursday.
"I really can't tell you how much I admired his work, how much I thought of him as a human being, and how grateful and honored I was when he joined 'Top Gun' and then came back for 'Top Gun: Maverick,'" Cruise said. Multiple outlets, including the Associated Press and Entertainment Weekly, reported the comments, which Cruise shared during a presentation of Paramount Pictures' upcoming movies
Cruise then called for a moment of silence.
"Thank you, Val. I wish you well on your next journey," the "Mission Impossible" actor said.
Kilmer died on Tuesday in Los Angeles at the age of 65. His daughter confirmed to The New York Times that the cause of the actor's death was pneumonia. Kilmer had been diagnosed with throat cancer in 2014, although he made a recovery.
Following the news of his death, tributes poured in from celebrities, costars, and directors.
In the "Top Gun" film franchise — centered on naval fighter pilots — Kilmer played Tom "Iceman" Kazansky, a rival to Cruise's Pete "Maverick" Mitchell.
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The original "Top Gun" film was released in 1986 and became a classic. Over three decades later, in 2022, "Top Gun: Maverick" was released.
Kilmer's voice was permanently damaged due to a tracheostomy, but he worked with a tech company to use AI to recreate his voice so that he could reprise his role in the sequel.
During the red carpet event at a premiere of "Top Gun: Maverick" in May 2022, Cruise told Entertainment Tonight that he "rallied hard" for Kilmer to be in the film.
"The kind of talent that he has, and you see that scene, it's very special. It's just very special," Cruise said of Kilmer's performance.
Jerry Bruckheimer, a producer on the sequel, said in 2022 that Cruise was determined to get Kilmer to return for the movie.
"He said, 'We have to have Val, we have to have him back. We have to have him in the film,'" Bruckheimer told People. "And he was the driving force. We all wanted him, but Tom was really adamant that if he's going to make another 'Top Gun,' Val had to be in it."
During an appearance on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" in February 2023, Cruise said he got "emotional" while shooting his scenes with Kilmer in "Top Gun: Maverick."
"I just say this — that was pretty emotional. I've known Val for decades, and for him to come back and play that character, he's such a powerful actor that he instantly became that character again," Cruise told host Jimmy Kimmel.
"I was crying. I was crying; I got emotional. He's such a brilliant actor, and I love his work," Cruise added.
A representative for Cruise told Business Insider that the actor had no additional comment.
A representative for Paramount did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent by BI outside regular hours.