Nicolas Cage

Birthday: 7 January 1964, Long Beach, California, USA

Birth Name: Nicholas Kim Coppola

Height: 183 cm

Nicolas Cage was born Nicolas Kim Coppola in Long Beach, California, the son of comparative literature professor August Coppola (whose brother is director Francis Ford Coppola) and dancer/choreographe ...Show More

Hollywood didn't know if I was an actor or a nut or if I was this crazy character I was playing. I h Show more Hollywood didn't know if I was an actor or a nut or if I was this crazy character I was playing. I had developed an image of being a little bit unusual, different and wild. Hide

[on making his character in Knowing (2009) a single father] I have seen a lot of movies with single Show more [on making his character in Knowing (2009) a single father] I have seen a lot of movies with single mothers and their children. They're good, but there are not so many with capable single fathers. There seems to be this archetype that if you're a man and single, you're incapable of raising a child, which I think needs to be broken. If you find yourself in that position - like I have - it's important not to give up because of what people tell you. Hide

I am not a demon. I am a lizard, a shark, a heat-seeking panther. I want to be Bob Denver on acid pl Show more I am not a demon. I am a lizard, a shark, a heat-seeking panther. I want to be Bob Denver on acid playing the accordion. Hide

I needed to change my name just to liberate myself and find out I could do it without walking into a Show more I needed to change my name just to liberate myself and find out I could do it without walking into a Hollywood casting office with the name Coppola. Hide

So many directors are so arrogant. For example, Klaus Kinski -- who Werner Herzog has a legacy with Show more So many directors are so arrogant. For example, Klaus Kinski -- who Werner Herzog has a legacy with -- he was very frustrated with the arrogance. We always hear Werner's side of the story about "Klaus was this and Klaus was that" but you never get to here Klaus' side of the story. I was doing a scene (on "Bad Lieutenant") -- it was in my second day of shooting -- and we all know the imagination and preparation (required) to think I was on cocaine (for the character). There was a little bottle of baby powder, and I'm snorting that. I'm psyching up, I'm psyching up, and he comes up and says (in German accent), "Now Nicolas, what is in that vial?" And I was like, "Are you kidding me? After four hours of this you're gonna actually ask me that? Take me out of my preparation? You would think the director would understand the actor's process and give us the space and the room to do what it is we need to do. Hide

James Dean in East of Eden (1955), the scene where he's trying to give Raymond Massey the money on h Show more James Dean in East of Eden (1955), the scene where he's trying to give Raymond Massey the money on his father's birthday. I was 14, I was at the New Beverly Cinema, and I said, "Oh, no, that is exactly how I feel. Oh my God, I have to do this. Nothing else ever affected me as strongly. -- on if there were any moments in his life when he realized he was going to be an actor. Hide

There is a method of thought that says it's better to stay mysterious, make yourself an event so whe Show more There is a method of thought that says it's better to stay mysterious, make yourself an event so when you come out, people have a hunger to see you again. I can think of some superstars who adopt that principle, where they are very selective. But we are all going to get older, and there is something to be said about doing some of your best work when you are younger, when you still have that virility, something visceral and raw. I've heard there have been some actors who've regretted not doing more work when they were under fifty. (On why he works so much) Hide

Create a list » User Lists Related lists from IMDb users Top 40 Living Actors a list of 4 Show more Create a list » User Lists Related lists from IMDb users Top 40 Living Actors a list of 40 people created 18 Apr 2011 Weirdest Celebrity Baby Names for Boys a list of 35 people created 06 Jan 2014 Actors becoming writers a list of 35 images created 06 Jun 2014 Hate these people a list of 39 people created 01 Mar 2015 Favorite actors & directors a list of 23 people created 25 Mar 2015 See all related lists » Hide

There's a fine line between the Method actor and the schizophrenic. There's a fine line between the Method actor and the schizophrenic.

I'm at the point now where I know I'm doing something right when a movie gets mixed reviews, because Show more I'm at the point now where I know I'm doing something right when a movie gets mixed reviews, because then I'm not in the box. I don't want to make it too easy for people and I don't want to make it too easy for myself. I want to try something unusual. I feel good about the bad reviews because I feel like I've affected them on some level. They may not know what I was trying to do but they felt something. Hide

It's very risky for an actor who's a bankable star to make pictures like The Weather Man (2005) or L Show more It's very risky for an actor who's a bankable star to make pictures like The Weather Man (2005) or Lord of War (2005) because they inevitably promote them like big studio releases. And they're not big studio movies, they're more edgy, thought-provoking, independent-spirited films. What happens is, it goes into the computer, and everyone says they can't open the movie because they thought it was X when it actually was Y. Hide

(The hardest part was) trying to figure out how I was going to entertain you while playing a guy who Show more (The hardest part was) trying to figure out how I was going to entertain you while playing a guy who was completely out of his mind on crack. At the same time, trying to be responsible so it didn't become an advertisement for doing drugs. The other thing is, I wasn't sure I could play the part totally sober, which I was. In Leaving Las Vegas (1995), I had a few drinks between scenes to get to a certain feeling, to get to a certain truth. But with this I was trying to look at it more impressionistically from a landscape of maybe 25 years ago to see what would come out of that filter of my imagination. -- on the toughest aspect of preparing for The Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans (2009) Hide

When I did Vampire's Kiss (1988), I got so wound up. It was so important to me that this vision I ha Show more When I did Vampire's Kiss (1988), I got so wound up. It was so important to me that this vision I had of Peter Lowe's character get on film exactly the way that I wanted it, that I frankly don't think I was very easy for anyone to live with. Certainly, I was not easy for myself to live with. I remember that I wasn't drinking or anything at the time. One night I felt so wound up that I was about to snap. I ordered a martini. And I just relaxed, and I could tell my body really needed a rest. From then on, I learned you can do good work without torturing yourself. Hide

Usually it's very cathartic. The hard stuff is when you're not feeling great and you have to do a re Show more Usually it's very cathartic. The hard stuff is when you're not feeling great and you have to do a really happy scene. -- on the personal toll acting can take on a person. Hide

I don't want to minimize the effort that goes into having a career, but now with the video age, let' Show more I don't want to minimize the effort that goes into having a career, but now with the video age, let's face it, you can write your own stories and you can make your own movies and get it out. Or go on stage somewhere in a small venue off-off-off-Broadway. Hide

[about his marriage to Lisa Marie Presley] I'm sad about this, but we shouldn't have been married in Show more [about his marriage to Lisa Marie Presley] I'm sad about this, but we shouldn't have been married in the first place. Hide

[Pablo Picasso] said art is a lie that tells the truth. What if you just want to tell the truth and Show more [Pablo Picasso] said art is a lie that tells the truth. What if you just want to tell the truth and not lie about it? Hide

I want to make all kinds of movies. I do want to make big movies that are a lot of fun to go to, but Show more I want to make all kinds of movies. I do want to make big movies that are a lot of fun to go to, but I also want to make movies that are going to stimulate some thought and maybe raise some awareness. And so please don't think you're gonna go on a roller-coaster ride with those movies. Hide

I remember when I met Johnny Depp, he was a guitar player from Florida, and he had no idea he could Show more I remember when I met Johnny Depp, he was a guitar player from Florida, and he had no idea he could be an actor. I said, "I really think you are an actor, that you have that ability." That was just from playing one game of Monopoly with him. I sent him to my agent and he has gone on to carve out a successful career. Hide

I was being stalked by a mime - silent but maybe deadly. Somehow, this mime would appear on the set Show more I was being stalked by a mime - silent but maybe deadly. Somehow, this mime would appear on the set of set of Bringing Out the Dead (1999) and start doing strange things. I have no idea how it got past security. Finally, the producers took some action and I haven't seen the mime since. But it was definitely unsettling. Hide

[on Face/Off (1997)] Without tooting my own horn - I think it's a masterpiece. [on Face/Off (1997)] Without tooting my own horn - I think it's a masterpiece.

What happens is, you become different people in your path as an actor. When I was doing those things Show more What happens is, you become different people in your path as an actor. When I was doing those things, I was a very new actor. I didn't have a lot of training, and I was trying to make some sort of impact, because that was what was important for me at the time - to get on the map. There were things I would do that were more shocking, or approaches I would do to try and live the character, because I didn't have the training. But then, as I went on, I started to find other methods, ways to get into characters that weren't exactly destroying my life. (On the wild eccentrics he used to get into character earlier in his career) Hide

To be a good actor you have to be something like a criminal, to be willing to break the rules to str Show more To be a good actor you have to be something like a criminal, to be willing to break the rules to strive for something new. Hide

It's good to make movies that are tragedies, where people can think about things in life that are un Show more It's good to make movies that are tragedies, where people can think about things in life that are undeniable, that everyone has to deal with. But at the same time, it's also healing to make movies that are entertaining, that are a lot of fun, where you don't have to think about your problems. Hide

Nicolas Cage's FILMOGRAPHY - Page 3

as Actor (142)

National Treasure: Book Of Secrets

The Flash (2023)

Raising Arizona

Saturday Night Live - Season 33

Outcast

The Old Way

A Score to Settle

Mandy (2018)

Color Out of Space

Moonstruck

Snowden

Gone In Sixty Seconds

Windtalkers

Stolen

Saturday Night Live - Season 41

Mom and Dad

Ghost Rider

You Don't Nomi

Kiss of Death

The Trust

The Croods

Fast Times At Ridgemont High

Albert Brooks: Defending My Life

Prisoners of the Ghostland

The Runner

Saturday Night Live - Season 43

Nicolas Cage'S roles

Paul Maguire

Seth

Speckles

Rick Santoro

Troy

Gary Faulkner

Captain Antonio Corelli

Spider-Man Noir

Sailor Ripley

John Koestler

Superman

Jack Halcombe

John McLoughlin

Ronny Cammareri

Johnny Blaze

Ben Sanderson

Tom Welles

Will Gerard

Evan Lake

Randall 'Memphis' Raines

H.I. McDunnough

Doug Chesnic

Jack Campbell

Grug

Sergeant Joe Enders

Cameron Poe

Himself, Himself - Host

Peter Loew

Stone

Joe

Charlie Kaufman

Cris Johnson

Terence McDonagh

Yuri Orlov

Bill Firpo

Milton

Michael Williams

Castor Troy

The Wizard

Ray

David Spritz

Stanley Goodspeed

Joe Ransom

Dr. Tenma

Gallain

Zoc

Red Miller

Edward Malus

Rayford Steele

Little Junior Brown