Portraying the handsome but undisciplined renegade warrior Madmartigan in Willow is an actor with a formidable background - Val Kilmer.

At age 17, Kilmer was accepted into the Juilliard Academy in New York, the youngest student ever admitted at that time. He played several leading roles while studying drama there. He also co-wrote a play entitled How It All Began, which was seen by Joseph Papp and later presented at the Public Theatre with Kilmer in the lead.

"Actually, the story is like The Hobbit," notes Kilmer of the adventure he shared with Warwick Davis and David Steinberg.

He subsequently appeared in Papp's production of Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part I. Kilmer's Broadway debut came in the play Slab Boys.

In 1984, Kilmer made his motion picture debut in the comedy Top Secret. In his next film, Real Genius, Kilmer portrayed a collegiate prodigy with a unique sense of humor.

His best known performance, however, was in the box-office smash Top Gun. Kilmer played Tom "Iceman" Kazansky, the talented F-14 pilot whose technical skills in the cockpit are unmatched by any of his Top Gun flight school peers.

Now, with Madmartigan, Kilmer is again at war, in an unusual world, the world of Willow. And this warrior is different.

"I really like Madmartigan," Kilmer explains. "He's fun to play. I like the fact that he's unpredictable. He's a hustler, so he has many different characteristics that come out of living through hard times. And that's enjoyable to play. He's definitely one of the most interesting characters I've done. It's fun to play a schmuck - but he's a likable schmuck."

Preparing for a role such as Madmartigan - a man living in an entirely different world - might seem a difficult challenge. However, Kilmer approached the role very simply, realizing that Madmartigan is an individual with very fundamental necessities.

The magic of Willow shifted into real life when Val Kilmer took the lovely Joanne Whalley as his princess bride.

"I didn't do anything special," Kilmer observes, "because Madmartigan's really a very basic guy. Also, [director] Ron Howard and [executive producer] George Lucas are so good at what they do that everything is already there for you. You don't have to worry or think about it. I had a couple of talks with Ron about the character's style and tempo. Basically, what I had to do was make up aspects of the character that didn't exist in the writing. But this film is really well-written, so it gave me a good idea of what Madmartigan is like."

One of the requirements for Kilmer's role was being able to handle a sword. Not only did he have to learn to use the ancient weapon, he had to develop a style of fighting unique to Madmartigan. And he accomplished that task, curiously enough, with the use of juggling.

"We wanted to find a style of sword-fighting that was different and we came up with something that has elements of juggling in it," Kilmer explains. "I didn't even know I could juggle. We were just fooling around looking for something unusual that Madmartigan could do. Bill Hobbs, the fight arranger, was searching for some kind of style that was original while combining things that George Lucas likes in the Japanese culture. So, we wanted to have something that matched the character, some bravado that had meaning. We first rejected the idea of juggling because it's pretty meaningless for fighting. Then, we started fooling around with different things that made it look like some of the disciplines in the martial arts which are based upon the original Samurai practice for battle. Yet, now, it has been developed into an art, a physical discipline. So, we developed a similar style for Madmartigan, using elements of juggling and the Samurai and came up with what you see on the screen."

Kilmer has found the role delightful since the beginning. "When I finished reading the script for Willow, and this was before I even knew whether I had the role, it was so much fun to read," Kilmer reveals, "that I read it again immediately. It's just a very good story."

Madmartigan (Kilmer) isn't your average warrior. After all, he has an uncanny fashion sense.

But was it the story that attracted Kilmer to this project?

"No, Ron gave me the job," he says with a laugh. "But, seriously, the story was really good and the characters, very interesting. I can't say that I've always had a desire to do this kind of movie, but I've always loved animated Disney films. I don't think anyone has ever come close to Disney other than George Lucas. I love George's films, and that was part of the thrill of being cast in Willow.

"Actually, the story is like The Hobbit. That's the way I describe it when people ask me what it is. I say, 'Well, it's like The Hobbit and my character is a warrior on Warrior Skid Row. And imagine people of regular height moving around that world.' That's about as close as I can get to describing it. There are also many positive things being said in this picture. For instance, the story of the princess, Sorsha. She goes through a great deal and overcomes all obstacles. Every one of us is faced with the challenge of that every day of our lives. And that makes this film rewarding to work on."

Willow has been a positive experience for Kilmer - he ended up, in real life, marrying co-star Joanne Whalley (who plays Sorsha) - but it has also been physically demanding. The swordfighting, rain and mud have made the job more grueling than any of his previous films.

"Every day has something drastically different and most of the time, nobody else has done any of it before you do. I think they set out to make the hardest movie that they could. I mean, it looks like it was designed that way."

With the physical hardships came beautiful scenery. Willow shot on locations in New Zealand and Wales, whose inaccessibility and brutal weather often masked incredible beauty.

"I like location work because usually the atmosphere is better for the actor," Kilmer comments. "It's real atmosphere. Even if they have to stop traffic or whatever, it's easier to act with real trees or real grass, for example, but it's also more attractive. Some of the places we've been shooting on location for Willow have really been beautiful and it has been nice to be outside - although, I think we picked the most brutal hundred square yards in Wales, too. We shot some scenes of the Nockmaar Castle at the shale rock quarry and the weather was pretty rough. But, fortunately, we had to go through beautiful valleys to arrive there."

Subtleties, such as a brief, concerned glance, were used by the actor to convey Madmartigan's friendship for Willow (Warwick Davis).

Kilmer has nothing but praise for the men behind Willow, George Lucas and Ron Howard. As an admirer of their films, he was pleased to work with them.

"George Lucas is like Zorro," Kilmer jokes. "He comes and goes on the set. And he leaves his mark when he's gone. But when he's around, he really takes an interest in what's happening. He really loves to play with things, which is fun because, usually, producers are people you don't think you can really talk to. I haven't specifically talked to George about my character, but we have discussed the ways he expresses himself which is through the objects he uses and how he uses them.

"For instance, one night after rushes, I went up to talk to George about some things and showed him a couple of pictures of the armature that I had a few problems with. We looked at the photos and he said, 'Well, it's kind of hard to tell.' So I said, 'Why don't I go and put it on, it will take me five minutes and I'll show you.' It was 9 p.m. and Ron had been working all day long and George had just flown in so he said, 'OK.' That made me happy because usually you get the attitude that 'It's OK and don't worry about it.' So, we were down there for an hour-and-a-half working with different parts of the armor to make it look right. And that's when he's really at his best when he's got something to look at and can get his hands on it and really make it work. I'm sure he's that way with storyboards, too. It makes the job enjoyable when you know the people making the film really care.

"As an actor, your main concern is getting communicated what is hard to communicate. It's hard to talk about acting. So unless you do it, which half the time you can't do until you're on the set and in the costume, you are never really sure that you're doing it correctly. One of the things that makes George brilliant in making movies is that he has the ability to choose something that has existed before and turn it into something completely new. For instance, Darth Vader's helmet which is modeled after a Samurai helmet, something that took a culture that's aesthetically-minded, but very practical, a long time to develop. It's an image that means something. It not only looks right but it comes from a real background. George takes things which are very precise and changes them a little bit here and there so it's familiar and yet you've never seen it before. That's also the style of Willow.

None of his junior rodeo training could fully prepare Kilmer for his duel in the rain with Kael (Patrick Roach).

"George's films are also believable. He sets up things and you believe it even though it's outrageous. That's true of Willow. Every now and then, something very realistic will happen and it will be acceptable, it won't jar you. And the same with the fantasy: Bizarre things happen but in the world of Willow they're normal. An Eborsisk monster comes out of a moat or we get turned into pigs by magic. Those are things that happen in this magical world."

Although Willow is a big and complex production, Kilmer found that director Ron Howard (STARLOG #132) seemed to juggle the numerous elements of battles, hundreds of extras and complicated special effects with relative ease.

"I don't like to compare Ron with other directors I've worked with," Kilmer says, "because then I'll have to insult the other directors! He is very, very good. I've always had the experience of having a concern about what the director wants except on this film. Besides having a great director, Willow's story is so strong, it speaks for itself. It tells you what should happen in a scene.

"There was one scene where Madmartigan admits that he cares about Willow," Kilmer continues. "And it only happens in one look that Madmartigan gives him, which Willow doesn't even see, but the audience has to see it to show that Madmartigan does have a heart, because he's brutal to Willow for as long as possible. So, that little moment has to carry a long way. You not only have to see him give that look, but you have to believe it as well. Ron has really good taste about that, so as an actor, you never have to be concerned as to whether those things that are so crucial to a scene are working the way they should. It's as intricate with the acting as it is with the FX.