- Title: Tom Cruise remembers 'Top Gun' co-star Val Kilmer at CinemaCon
- Date: 4th April 2025
- Summary: SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (FILE - MAY 4, 2022) (REUTERS) ***WARNING: CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** HELICOPTER LANDING ON AIRCRAFT CARRIER WITH CRUISE ON BOARD CRUISE WALKING FROM HELICOPTER CRUISE WITH FANS CRUISE BEING INTERVIEWED LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (FILE - MAY 19, 2022) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF CRUISE AT LONDON PREMIERE OF "TOP GUN: MAVERICK" CANNES,
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- Keywords: Cinemacon Tom Cruise Val Kilmer
- Location: VARIOUS LOCATIONS
- City: VARIOUS LOCATIONS
- Country: US
- Topics: Celebrities,Arts/Culture/Entertainment,North America
- Reuters ID: LVA002422504042025RP1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Actor Tom Cruise paid tribute to his late "Top Gun" co-star, Val Kilmer, on Thursday (April 3), remembering him as a talented actor who loved movies.
Cruise opened his appearance at the CinemaCon industry convention in Las Vegas with remarks about his "dear friend" Kilmer, who died on Tuesday (April 1) at age 65.
"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 came back later for 'Top Gun: Maverick,'" Cruise said.
"He loved movies and he gave a lot to all of us with his performances," Cruise said.
In 1986 film "Top Gun," Kilmer played naval aviator Tom "Iceman" Kazansky, a rival to Cruise's character, Lieutenant Pete Mitchell. Kilmer reprised the role in 2022 hit "Top Gun: Maverick" when he could barely speak after years of battling throat cancer.
Cruise asked the CinemaCon audience to pause in a moment of silence to remember Kilmer's work.
"Thank you for doing that," Cruise said. "I know he'd appreciate that."
Cruise, 62, attended CinemaCon to promote "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning," which will be released by Paramount in May.
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