Val Kilmer 'begged' to be included in the Top Gun sequel

Val Kilmer has revealed he "begged" to be in the Top Gun sequel, a request that was fulfilled thanks to a recreation of his voice using AI technology.

The 62-year-old actor’s big break arrived when he portrayed the cocky antagonist Tom ‘Iceman’ Kazansky in the 1986 hit action movie. And while it only made sense to get him back for the upcoming Top Gun: Maverick, the star struggled to convince producers to give him the role.

Val currently uses a voice box to communicate after undergoing a tracheostomy in order to treat his throat cancer diagnosis in 2014.

While he’s been cancer-free for several years, he told the MailOnline that people "struggle to understand him". But the actor has since discovered a novel method of bringing his voice back and once again starring on the big screen – artificial intelligence.

Speaking about his return to the Top Gun franchise, he said: “Tom was Maverick, but Maverick's nemesis was Iceman. The two went together like salt and pepper."