He once somersaulted into the studio, performed highkicks and threw money at the audience before whipping his shirt off on Terry Wogan’s BBC chat show.
But Nicolas Cage, 58, has admitted that he was ‘terrified’ to play himself in the upcoming action comedy film, The Unbearable Weight Of Massive Talent.
Famed for his eccentric behaviour, including taking magic mushrooms with his cat and blowing his $150m fortune on ‘haunted houses’, a dinosaur skull and an octopus that ‘helped with his acting’, the actor chose to bring his ‘old self’ back for the role.
Bizzare! Somersaulting on Terry Wogan, taking drugs with his cat and blowing $150m: Nicolas Cage, 58, has admitted he was ‘terrified’ to play himself in the upcoming film
Speaking head of the films release, Nicholas detailed: ‘I looked at an old interview I did on the Wogan show where I was front handspringing.’
‘I was promoting Wild At Heart, doing karate kicks, throwing money out at the audience, and I thought, “That guy is a really obnoxious, arrogant, irreverent, mad man — and I think he needs to be in this movie.”‘
Stepping out to join Terry on the sofa in 1990, the actor flung himself across the room as he performed somersaults, high kicks and threw money at the audience.
Wild: Speaking head of the films release, Nicholas detailed: ‘I looked at an old interview I did on the Wogan show where I was front handspringing’
Entrance: Famed for his eccentric behaviour, including taking drugs with his cat and blowing his $150m fortune the actor chose to bring his ‘old self’ back for the role (With Terry in 1990)
He then proceeded to bare this chest to Terry, in a chat show entrance that no one would forget in a hurry.
Nicholas detailed: ‘That was Nic in 1990 and I’m so glad I’m nothing like that person anymore. But I was happy to bring him back.’
Speaking to the films writer and director Tom Gormican, he continued: ‘Actually, I have really quiet moments at home, reading with my cat. Don’t you want to put in anything like that?’
Throwback: He added: ‘I thought, “That guy is a really obnoxious, arrogant, irreverent, mad man — and I think he needs to be in this movie”‘
Crazy: Stepping out to join Terry on the sofa in 1990, the actor flung himself across the room as he performed somersaults, high kicks and threw money at the audience
Eccentric: Nicholas detailed: ‘That was Nic in 1990 and I’m so glad I’m nothing like that person anymore. But I was happy to bring him back’
The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent is slated to open in theaters April 22, centering on Nicholas Cage playing a version of himself, who has come upon financial troubles.
He agrees to appear at the birthday party of a billionaire superfan for $1million, but he’s really there as a CIA informant since the superfan (Pedro Pascal) is a drug kingpin.
Yet when approached about the action comedy feature, an apprehensive Nicolas feared he would ‘make a joke of himself’ due to the internet’s perception of him as a ‘madman.’
Nic as Nic: The film is slated to open in theaters April 22, centering on Cage playing a version of himself, who has come upon financial troubles
Variety’s Owen Gleiberman calls the concept of Cage playing Cage, ‘a conceit we get used to in seconds’ and calls it ‘a gift that keeps on giving.’
He adds the film is a ‘commercial comedy that has a delirious good time poking fun at Nicolas Cage, celebrating everything that makes him Nicolas Cage.’
Nicholas did actually have financial problems which lead to him taking on practically every role he could, with Gleiberman calling him, ‘the superhero of slumming.’
Funny: Variety’s Owen Gleiberman calls the concept of Cage playing Cage, ‘a conceit we get used to in seconds’ and calls it ‘a gift that keeps on giving’
The Hollywood Reporter’s John DeFore calls the film a, ‘romp aimed at cultists who have sought out the Crazy Cage performances and forgiven the misfires in between.’
After screening to the first wave of critics, the film has earned a rare 100 per cent fresh rating through the first wave of reviews on Rotten Tomatoes.
The film also stars Tiffany Haddish, Ike Barinholtz, Sharon Horgan, Neil Patrick Harris and Lily Mo Sheen, the daughter of Kate Beckinsale and Michael Sheen.
Rave reviews: Last month, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent at SXSW in Austin, Texas, scored rave reviews
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