Entertainment
Legendary actor Val Kilmer dies at 65
Prolific American actor Val Kilmer, who was propelled to fame with “Top Gun” and went on to starring roles as Batman and Jim Morrison, has died at age 65, the New York Times reported Tuesday.
The cause of death was pneumonia, his daughter Mercedes Kilmer told the Times. He had battled throat cancer following a 2014 diagnosis, but later recovered, she said.
AFP has reached out to his representatives for comment.
Originally a stage actor, Kilmer burst onto the big screen full of charisma, cast as a rock star in Cold War spoof “Top Secret!” in 1984.
Two years later, he gained fame as the cocky, if mostly silent fighter pilot in training Tom “Iceman” Kazansky in box office smash hit “Top Gun,” playing a rival to Tom Cruise’s “Maverick.”
A versatile character actor whose career spanned decades, Kilmer toggled between blockbusters and smaller-budget independent films. He got a shot at leading man status in Oliver Stone’s “The Doors,” depicting Jim Morrison’s journey from a psychedelics-loving LA film student to 60s rock frontman.
After a cameo in Quentin Tarantino-written “True Romance,” Kilmer went on to star alongside Al Pacino and Robert De Niro in “Heat” and took a turn as the masked Gotham vigilante in “Batman Forever,” between the Bruce Wayne portrayals by Michael Keaton and George Clooney.
A 1996 Entertainment Weekly cover story dubbed Kilmer “The Man Hollywood Loves to Hate,” depicting him as a sometimes surly eccentric with exasperating work habits.
A New York Times interviewer in 2002 said Kilmer “hardly lives up to that reputation” and found the actor instead “friendly, buoyant and so open that he often volunteers personal details about his life and is quick to laugh at himself.”
“You have to learn to speak Val,” director D. J. Caruso told the newspaper.– ‘ Magical life’ –Born Val Edward Kilmer on New Year’s Eve 1959, he began acting in commercials as a child.
Kilmer was the youngest person ever accepted to the drama department at New York’s fabled Juilliard school, and made his Broadway debut in 1983 alongside Sean Penn and Kevin Bacon.
In Hollywood, the Los Angeles native longed to make serious films but found himself in a series of schlocky blockbusters and expensive flops in the early 2000s.
Chastened by a decade or more of low-budget movies, he was mounting a comeback in the 2010s with a successful stage show about Mark Twain that he hoped to turn into a film when he was struck by cancer.
“Val,” an intimate documentary about Kilmer’s stratospheric rise and later fall in Hollywood, premiered at the Cannes film Festival in 2021 and showed him struggling for air after a tracheotomy.
Kilmer “has the aura of a man who was dealt his cosmic comeuppance and came through it,” US publication Variety wrote of the film.
“He fell from stardom, maybe from grace, but he did it his way.”When he reprised his role as “Iceman” in the long-awaited sequel “Top Gun: Maverick,” Kilmer’s real-life health issues,and rasp of voice,were written into the character.“
Instead of treating Kilmer — and, indeed, the entire notion of Top Gun — as a throwaway nostalgia object, he’s given a celluloid swan song that’ll stand the test of time,” GQ wrote.
On his website, Kilmer said he had led a “magical life.”
“For more than half a century, I have been honing my art, no matter the medium. Be it literature, movies, poetry, painting, music, or tracking exotic and beautiful wildlife,” he wrote.
According to the Times, he is survived by two children, Mercedes and Jack Kilmer.
AFP
Entertainment
2Baba in talks with Defense Minister to leverage music for Nat’l Security
In response, the Minister described the initiative as one that strongly aligns with the Federal Government’s non-kinetic strategy for tackling insecurity, noting that 2Baba’s influence and credibility among Nigerian youths position him as a powerful mentor and voice for positive change.
•Minister of Defence, Gen. Christopher Musa , and music icon, Innocent Idibia (2Baba)
Nigerian music icon, Innocent Idibia, better known as 2Baba, alongside his team has met with the Minister of Defence, Gen. Christopher Musa to discuss the prospect of using music as a tool to counter violent narratives among young Nigerians.
During the meeting held in Abuja, 2Baba unveiled an initiative designed as a national, culture-driven intervention that leverages music to promote behavioural change and youth reorientation.
The campaign seeks to transform entertainment into a force for positive social influence, particularly at a time when some music narratives and visual aesthetics risk normalising aggression and harmful “hustle culture.”
Explaining the vision, 2Baba said the campaign aims to turn up conversations around lasting solutions to insecurity, break down barriers limiting access to creative talent, and activate youth engagement through experiential platforms, and ultimately helping to turn down the culture of violence.
In response, the Minister described the initiative as one that strongly aligns with the Federal Government’s non-kinetic strategy for tackling insecurity, noting that 2Baba’s influence and credibility among Nigerian youths position him as a powerful mentor and voice for positive change.
Entertainment
Tiwa Savage foundation to train 100 African music talents
As part of its first programme, the foundation will choose 100 creatives from across Africa for a four day intensive training in Lagos from April 23 to 26, 2026.
Photo: Tiwa Savage (middle) flanked by Senator Daisy Danjuma (left) and Founder of The Delborough Hotel, Stanley Uzochukwu, at the venue that played host to the official unveiling of the Tiwa Savage Music Foundation.
The Tiwa Savage Music Foundation is set to discover, train and support 100 emerging music talents across Africa.
As part of its first programme, the foundation will choose 100 creatives from across Africa for a four day intensive training in Lagos from April 23 to 26, 2026.
The foundation was unveiled on March 9, 2026, in Lagos during a launch attended by major figures from entertainment, business and the public sector.
At the event, the 46-year-old singer said the project would go beyond grooming performers and would also pay attention to other important parts of the music business.
“This is everything to do with music, film scoring, music publishing, music therapy, production, sound engineering,” the award-winning singer said.
Savage emphasised that the goal of the foundation is to help talented young Africans gain the training, structure and opportunities they need to grow.
“We don’t lack talents in Nigeria, we have so much talents. What I want to do is to be able to create access so that people that have the talent can find the right infrastructure, education and can also be a bridge and pipeline to the rest of the world,” Savage said.
Entertainment
Ben TV Chairman , Alistair Soyode Nominated for African Business Awards 2026
The award ceremony , scheduled for 29 May 2026, recognises outstanding achievement and leadership within the creative, media, and entertainment industries.
The African Business Chamber (AfBC) has nominated Alistair Soyode African – Growth – Diaspora – Engagement – Founder, Nigeria in Diaspora Leadership Forum & Chairman, Ben Television for the AfBC Creative, Media & Entertainment Industry Excellence Award.
The award ceremony , scheduled for 29 May 2026, recognises outstanding achievement and leadership within the creative, media, and entertainment industries.
It celebrates individuals, organisations, or enterprises that have demonstrated exceptional creativity, commercial success, and cultural impact across sectors such as film, television, music, fashion, digital media, publishing, advertising, and the performing arts.
Recipients are recognised for elevating African narratives, driving innovation, expanding global reach, and contributing meaningfully to economic growth, cultural influence, and industry development.
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