Val Kilmer’s children are opening up about their father's battle with cancer.
The “Top Gun” star was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2015 and underwent a tracheotomy that altered his ability to speak.
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Now, the 61-year-old’s health struggles and recovery are being documented in “Val,” a personal documentary hitting Amazon Prime on August 6.
Kilmer's children, Jack and Mercedes Kilmer, who served as associate producers on the documentary and also appear in the film, told Extra that he’s doing “really well” and still “recovering.”
Mercedes added: "The recovery process is just as grueling as the actual disease."
The siblings opened up about the hardships of watching a loved one go through such a serious illness.
"It's incredibly difficult," Mercedes told Yahoo Entertainment.
"Especially for him because his work is his voice. [Because of] his training as an actor... he has such a natural faculty for speech, and I don't think he honestly would have survived... were it not for his dedication to developing that muscle of his voice,” she explained.
Since the surgery, Kilmer speaks with the aid of a voice box, so his son, Jack, lended his voice to narrate the documentary.
Jack went on to commend his father for having such a positive attitude.
"He's such a force of nature," he said.
He continued: "He'll be at his lowest in the hospital cracking jokes, and having the whole staff in fits of laughter. We were more worried about people's reaction [to his illness] than actually going through the process with him, but people ended up being just nothing but supportive and cool."
The duo said that the outpouring of support from fans has been comforting.
"Everyone has been so supportive; it makes me emotional," Jack said. "It’s really beautiful to see people come together."
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Since the film, which spans his lengthy acting career, also consists of new footage along with home movies shot by Kilmer, they said it was "really fun” to watch.
"We were cracking up [during] a lot of it," Mercedes explained of the documentary, which features over 40 years worth of videos shot from a 16mm shot while at home and on the set of his legendary films.
Though Kilmer is set to reprise his signature role as Tom Cruise’s nemesis in the upcoming “Top Gun,” his children explain that he’ll look for other creative outlets moving forward.
"Acting is just one of the things that he does," Jack said, adding, "He thrives in doing a lot of other creative things."
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