Val Kilmer’s Daughter Defends AI Performance: “I Think This Is a Really Historic Precedent”

The upcoming movie As Deep as the Grave has attracted a lot of attention thanks to one of its cast members — the recently deceased Val Kilmer, whose performance in the movie was made possible by generative AI. In a new interview with NBC’s The Today Show, Kilmer’s daughter Mercedes defended her family’s decision to have Val’s likeness featured in the movie, following his death.

As previously reported, Val signed onto the movie prior to the 2020 pandemic, which stalled the production. Mercedes confirmed that Val “approved the use of AI so that he could complete and be part of this film,” adding that “if we’re going to have [AI], we can make things that expand the possibilities of what we can do as humans, not to replace them.”

When it comes to the negative reaction the project has gotten, Mercedes said that “it’s so fascinating to see the responses, and they are really justified.” However, she felt that the way this has been approached, which involves “solidifying structures for actors to own their licensing and have rights… This is the time before these laws are written, to make sure that there’s a structure for compensation, to make sure that the actors get paid on par with what they would get paid if they were physically doing it. And if it creates more jobs, that’s wonderful. I think this is a really historic precedent.”

Said Mercedes, “It started off as something to overcome the limitations of his illness, but then it evolved into something where he really was like, ‘Oh wait, I have a chance to actually set a precedent, that now other actors will say, well, Val Kilmer, they structured his contract in that way.'”

Mercedes noted that a lot of the negative responses she’s seen have come from “people that maybe have a more precarious position in the industry are worried and see AI as a threat, which is absolutely valid — younger actors and musicians. I’m a musician. A lot of people that I know… We’re so scared of this technology.”

Additionally, though, she said that “I’ve gotten a lot of really good responses from older people, maybe more established in the industry, that see it as a way to protect the actors’ ownership of their IP.” From her perspective, when approaching AI, “it’s much easier to structure [an actor’s] rights if you proactively license something.”

Mercedes didn’t have any specific advice for how the estates of deceased celebrities like Marilyn Monroe or James Dean might approach AI licensing — since in the case of As Deep as the Grave, her father was aware of the project before his death and wanted to participate. However, she said that “this project gave us an opportunity to make sure that if someone in the future uses his likeness unauthorized, we can say, ‘Oh no, look, this is what you’re supposed to do,’ rather than try to hypothetically prove what it would be like.”

Mercedes added that she “wouldn’t just put his likeness in something without his permission.” However, “there are just certain things that he talked about, ways to use it, that we may do eventually. There may be video games based on characters that he made… And now we know our family can protect the use of that.”

As Deep as the Grave does not yet have an official release date. Check out the full interview below.