Val Kilmer has earned himself a versatile career in Hollywood. From enacting DC’s iconic Batman in Batman Forever to action hits like Top Gun, the eccentric actor also did comedies, one of which had him kissing MCU star Robert Downey Jr. In Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Kilmer played a gay detective, an idea he himself proposed. The 2005 movie had a scene that required them to kiss to escape from the police’s attention.
Moreover, the Top Gun actor once revealed to The Guardian that he actually wouldn’t mind an actual relationship with Robert Downey Jr. However, despite his interest in the charming star, Kilmer claimed that he had to imagine an X-Men actor he had previously worked with while kissing.
Val Kilmer on kissing Robert Downey Jr.
According to a report by Film School Rejects that was reshared on IMDb’s trivia page for Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, the 63-year-old actor was keen on kissing RDJ but had to think of Kevin Bacon to get it done. He said,
“So I could get into it.”
To delve into the moment, Val Kilmer imagined Bacon while having a lip-to-lip with Robert Downey Jr. in the 2005 movie. The movie was critically acclaimed but wasn’t able to bag a significant income at the box office. Kilmer had previously worked with Bacon in the 1990’s Flatliners. Supposedly, Kilmer put his memories of Bacon to good use years later.
On the other hand, Kilmer also unraveled his perception of RDJ. The otherwise iconic actor had met Kilmer a couple of times, instantly impressed by his charm. Therefore, after he learned that RDJ might get cast in Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Kilmer quickly agreed to the movie.
Val Kilmer was eager to work with Robert Downey Jr.
The Batman Forever star met RDJ at a time when the latter was drunk. As per an interview with The Guardian, Kilmer threw a party for director Jim Sheridan when RDJ paid a visit. He wasn’t able to leave a great impression on Kilmer until an awards ceremony in 1996. Kilmer said,
“I’d never spent any time with him. It was about 1996. At some awards ceremony. And I thought well that’s quite a talent, because he was clearly high when we first met.”
Explaining RDJ’s energy as contagious, Kilmer was interested in working alongside the eccentric actor. Thus, after Kilmer received the script for Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, he agreed to it even before he read the entire script. Moreover, he also put forth the ingenuine idea of making his character gay to spice it up.
And well, Kilmer seemed to have enjoyed one good kiss with RDJ on-screen. Interestingly, Kilmer described RDJ’s kiss as better in comparison to Colin Farrell’s. Apart from all the fun, the movie also won a lengthy standing ovation at the Cannes Film Festival, in addition to a $15.8 million box-office collection and much critical acclaim.