Why Val Kilmer's Doc Holliday Has The Greatest Introduction In Western Movie History
33 Years Later, Tombstone Still Has The Greatest Character Introduction In Western History
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Tombstone gives just about all its characters great introductions, but there's a particular entrance that is one of the Western genre's best. Tombstone is one of the best Westerns of the 1990s, and was part of a short-lived box office revival of the genre after it essentially died during the 1980s.
Kicked off by the success of Kevin Costner's Dances with Wolves, the 1990s yielded hits such as Clint Eastwood's Unforgiven, Young Guns II and Maverick. Of course, Tombstone became famous for its troubled production, where the original helmer, Kevin Jarre, was fired a month into filming for working too slow, and leading man Kurt Russell had to take charge.
Russell is said to have ghostdirected Tombstone, and while it was only a modest hit, its reputation has only grown over time. Tombstone gives Russell's Wyatt Earp an iconic introduction, but it saves the best entrance for Wyatt's bestie Doc Holliday (Val Kilmer). Within the space of one scene, this intro tells audiences all they need to know about this charming, witty but fundamentally lethal gambler and gunfighter.
How Doc Holliday Is Introduced In Tombstone
In real life, Holliday trained to become a dentist, but after being diagnosed with tuberculosis, he turned to gambling instead. In Tombstone, Doc is introduced playing cards with a very angry gambler named Ed Bailey (Frank Stallone), who is aggressively calling on Holliday to play his hand or fold. Doc is clearly enjoying winding Ed up, meeting all of his demands with sarcastic remarks before playing a winning hand.
This doesn't sit well with Bailey, who stands and threatens Doc. Undaunted, Doc still taunts the man, but before Ed can even clear his revolver from its holster, Holliday draws his own pistols with lightning speed. He then lays them on the table so he and Ed "can be friends again," but when Bailey moves in to attack the former dentist, Doc stabs him and leaves the wounded man bleeding on the floor while gathering his winnings.
Willem Dafoe was originally cast as Tombstone's Doc Holliday until Hollywood Pictures vetoed his casting and suggested Val Kilmer instead.
Tombstone's Doc Holliday introduction runs less than three minutes, and beautifully establishes everything about the man. His sweating and coughing set up his illness - and how it does nothing to mute his wit or jest for life. It's clear he loves to live dangerously, as he enjoys goading his rival just as much as winning.
Crucially, in spite of Doc's playfulness and illness, he's still dangerous. He outdraws Ed with ease, and even after giving the man a chance to stand down, has no issues stabbing Bailey and putting him out of commission when threatened.
What Val Kilmer Brings To The Role
It has been said Val Kilmer deserved an Oscar nomination for Tombstone, and it's hard to dispute that. In a career filled with incredible performances, Doc is his best work. Kilmer is purely magnetic, and even with all of Doc's bravado and salty humor, it's clear there is a sadness at his core. Holliday knows he is not long for the world, and feels his only true emotional connection is with Wyatt.
It speaks to how superbly written Tombstone is that all those layers come across, but Kilmer is the one who breathes life into the performance. If anyone is trying to convince a friend to watch Tombstone, all they have to do is send a clip of Doc's introduction scene. Not only does it set up the character, but it's emblematic of why the film itself works so well.
It's the way it balances humor and drama, and how even small characters like Ed Bailey are given a sense of life and history. Tombstone gives all of its key characters - like Michael Biehn's Johnny Ringo - memorable entrances, but it is clear from the first ten seconds of Doc's introduction that Val Kilmer is about to take over the movie.
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- Release Date
- December 25, 1993
- Runtime
- 130 minutes
- Director
- George P. Cosmatos
- Writers
- Kevin Jarre
- Producers
- Bob Misiorowski, James Jacks, Sean Daniel
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Wyatt Earp
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Val Kilmer
Doc Holliday
Tombstone chronicles legendary marshal Wyatt Earp and his brothers as they seek fortune in a prosperous mining town. Forced to confront a gang threatening the community, Earp joins forces with the infamous Doc Holliday, highlighting a tense battle between lawmen and outlaws in the American West.
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Val Kilmer
- Birthdate
- December 31, 1959
- Birthplace
- Los Angeles, California, USA
- Notable Projects
- Batman Forever, The Prince of Egypt
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