Willow Executive Producer & Star Warwick Davis Reveal Val Kilmer Does Have Part in Sequel

With the 1988 fantasy movie, Willow, receiving an upcoming TV sequel on Disney+, with Warwick Davis reprising his iconic role as Willow Ufgood, it begs the question about the status of Val Kilmer’s character in the original film as Madmartigan due to actor Val Kilmer’s recent health issues. Kilmer does appear in the sequel to 1986’s Top Gun reprising his role as Iceman in Top Gun: Maverick. Warwick Davis and show writer and executive producer Jonathan Kasdan spoke to Yahoo! Entertainment at Star Wars Celebration, confirming that Kilmer will have “small but poignant” part in the upcoming sequel series.

Kasdan said on Kilmer’s role in the new series, “Val’s a huge part of this, and the first conversation I had, when Warwick and I got the greenlight to do this, was with Val. He continued, “We wanted his character to be a part of the story. We wanted him to be in the show. Because we were shooting during [the COVID-19 lockdowns], he wasn’t able to come to Wales and shoot with us. But he is in the show in a big way. And we’re pretty excited about it. … Madmartigan lives on.”

Warwick Davis added, “Val’s spirit is very much with the series. [He and I] have been in touch since we made the movie, and we’re good friends and he’s a terrific guy.” He went on regarding the experience filming the original, “I still attribute me getting through the film to Val. He kept my spirits up when conditions were really treacherous and difficult. I was cold, wet, tired. He kept me laughing, kept the whole thing fun.”

The new series arrives on November 30 on Disney+. You can check out the newly released trailer below: