VIDEO Val Kilmer, digitally “resurrected” in the first trailer of a controversial film: “Don't fear the dead”

The producers behind As Deep as the Grave have released the trailer for the upcoming historical drama, giving audiences a first look at the artificial intelligence (AI) technology used to create Val Kilmer's performance, Variety reports.

Kilmer, who died last April aged 65, had been cast as Father Fintan, a Catholic priest and Native American spiritualist. But he was already too ill to film his scenes. With the consent of Kilmer's heirs and his daughter Mercedes, the “As Deep as the Grave” crew used generative artificial intelligence to include the actor in the final version of the feature film.

Kilmer makes several appearances in the trailer, which premiered Wednesday at CinemaCon, America's biggest annual film industry convention. The pictures show Kilmer at different ages. At one point he appears as a spectral, almost ghostly figure, while in another sequence he appears as a charismatic priest in his 30s.

“Don't be afraid of the dead and don't be afraid of me,” Kilmer tells a child at one point, kneeling down to look her straight in the eye.

The project used both older footage of Kilmer, much of it provided by his family, as well as footage from his later years to portray his character. The sound also used Kilmer's voice, which in recent years has been affected by the tracheotomy he had to undergo in 2015 during his battle with cancer.

Kilmer's family gave their consent for him to be digitally “resurrected” for the film

“He was the actor I wanted for the role,” Coerte Voorhees, the film's writer-director, told Variety last month. It “was very much designed around him. It was inspired by his Native American heritage and his ties to the American Southwest and his love for that area,” the “As Deep as the Grave” director also said.

“I was looking at a shooting schedule and had it ready for shooting [pe Val Kilmer]. But he was going through an extremely, extremely difficult medical period and could not participate,” he explained.

“His family kept saying how important they thought the movie was and that Val really wanted to be a part of it,” Coerte Voorhees added.

“He really thought it was an important story that he wanted to put his name to. That support gave me the confidence to say, 'Okay, let's do it.'” Despite the fact that some might consider it controversial, that's what Val wanted,” he stressed.

“As Deep as the Grave” tells the true story of Ann and Earl Morris, two archaeologists in the southwestern United States who tried to reconstruct the history of the Navajo people through their excavations. The cast also includes Tom Felton (known from the “Harry Potter” movies) and Abigail Lawrie (“Tin Star”).

The film does not yet have an announced release date.

The film's producers insisted that the project was an ethical one

Variety magazine recently mentioned the heated debate surrounding artificial intelligence, with some parts of the creative community worried that this technology would lead to job losses and that actors' images could be used without their consent.

The producers of the new movie starring Val Kilmer said they know their decision could attract criticism, but they hope “As Deep as the Grave” will show how artificial intelligence can be used ethically. They also pointed out that the production followed the guidelines of the Screen Actors Guild of America (SAG) and financially compensated Kilmer's heirs for his appearance.

Mercedes Kilmer said in a press statement that she supports the film and noted that her father was “a deeply spiritual man” who resonated with “a story of discovery and enlightenment” set in the American Southwest, where she had chosen to live.

“He always viewed emerging technologies with optimism as a tool to expand narrative possibilities,” said Mercedes Kilmer. “That spirit is what we all honor in this film, of which he was an integral part,” she added.