What happened to Val Kilmer’s Heat character during the movie – and in the years after it ended? Now hailed as one of the greatest crime movies of all time, the reception to Heat was somewhat muted in critical circles, and the film – quite shockingly – didn’t receive a single Academy Award nomination. This is despite featuring some career-best work from director Michael Mann, cinematographer Dante Spinotti and stars Al Pacino, Robert De Niro and Val Kilmer.
Nearly 30 years on from Heat, Mann and co-author Meg Gardiner published a sequel novel. Fittingly dubbed Heat 2, the book acts as a prequel AND sequel, jumping from Chicago 1988 where De Niro’s character’s crew pull off an elaborate heist to shortly after the events of the movie and closing in 2000. It’s a sprawling crime saga that further fleshes out Heat’s main characters, and Mann is expected to turn Heat 2 into a movie as his next project.
Val Kilmer’s Character Escaped In Heat
Of the criminal gang that drives Heat’s story, Kilmer’s Chris Shiherlis is the only one to escape. After he’s shot and wounded during Heat’s famous shootout, De Niro’s McCauley takes him to a vet to get stitched up. The police then seek out Chris’ wife Charlene (Ashley Judd), and set up a stakeout waiting for Chris to come seek out her and their child. Chris does just that, but Charlene – who is being offered an immunity deal to avoid prosecution by helping the police – instead makes a hand gesture when he drives up, warning him it’s not safe; he gets back in his car and drives away.
Heat 2 Explains What Happened To Val Kilmer’s Chris Shiherlis
Chris is one of Heat 2’s main characters and the one who evolves the most. It reveals that after he had to abandon his family, Chris escaped the city with help from Jon Voight’s Nate. He later found himself working as a bodyguard to a crime family in the city of Ciudad del Este. He soon falls in love with Ana Liu, his boss’ daughter. Ana has ambitious plans that extend beyond his own family’s short-sightedness and wants to use the internet to open up a whole new revenue stream, as the nature of crime starts to change dramatically near the start of the 21st century.
Heat 2 also finds Chris evolving from bank robber to fledging crime boss. However, he still plans to reunite with Charlene and their son, and the final section in L.A. sees him confronted with a choice of staying with Ana or going back to his old life. He also has to decide if he wants revenge on Pacino’s Hanna for the death of his mentor McCauley. Heat 2’s story climaxes with another epic shootout – though it’s best to read the book or wait for the movie adaptation to learn how it all plays out.