From Top Gun to Batman Forever to The Doors the late Val Kilmer was easily one of the most versatile actors of his generation captivating audiences and critics alike since his rise in the 1980’s. So,

A unique talent, Val Kilmer was praised as an acting chameleon who took on varied and challenging roles, and the results were often memorable.

The Doors — Oliver Stone’s biopic of 60s rocker Jim Morrison — was one of Kilmer’s defining roles. The film has gone on to become a cult classic, but in 1991, the year of its release, it didn’t land a single Oscar nom. That year, the Best Actor Oscar was won by Anthony Hopkins for Jonathan Demme’s classic horror The Silence of the Lambs .