Nicolas Cage has obtained a reputation in recent years for making bad movies, but is that actually the case? While Nicolas Cage has starred in his fair share of hit movies, his status as an A-list star has waned over the last decade. His films nowadays usually go straight to DVD or streaming services, and are released at such a rapid rate that they often pass by unnoticed except by his most ardent fans.
Nicolas Cage has starred in over 100 movies over the course of his career. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in Leaving Las Vegas and was again Oscar-nominated for his duel performance of Charlie and Donald Kaufman in Adaptation. After a slew of character roles, Nicolas Cage reinvented himself in the mid-'90s as an action star, with back-to-back-to-back hits The Rock, Con Air, and Face/Off. Over a 40-year career, he's worked with auteurs (Charlie Kaufman, David Lynch), living legends (Martin Scorsese, The Coen Brothers), action directors (Michael Bay, John Woo), and independents (Panos Cosmatos).
Famous for his over-the-top unique acting style, a Nicolas Cage performance is always worth watching, even if some of the movies he's in aren't. His penchant for chewing the scenery has gifted the internet with countless memes and earned him a cult following, with many fans eager to see his latest bout of "Cage Rage." But while there are some indisputably bad movies in his recent filmography, is his current reputation for just staring in bad movies justified?
Why Nicolas Cage Is Now Known For Making "Bad" Movies
The primary reason for Nicolas Cage’s reputation for making "bad" movies now is due to his financial problems. Nicolas Cage was once one of Hollywood's highest-paid actors, at one point being worth over $150 million. However, Cage found himself in financial difficulties after adopting a lavish lifestyle. From buying castles in Europe, a fleet of Rolls Royces, and an array of exotic items (including a dinosaur skull), Cage's spending sprees were legendary. However, he found himself in hot water with the IRS over unpaid taxes, and the financial crash of 2007/2008 wiped out most of his assets. Suffering catastrophic losses, Cage took on as many movie roles as possible in order to get himself back on track. As a result of this, though, quality control inevitably took a hit.
In addition to this, many of Nicolas Cage's roles in recent movies are low-budget independent fare that don't get a theatrical release. While the size of a film's budget should have no bearing on a movie's quality, it can hamper certain aspects of production and come across as a B-movie as a result. Combining this with inexperienced directors and lackluster, clichéd scripts, movies such as Grand Isle, Left behind, and 211 all fall into the bad Nicolas Cage movie category (Grand Isle even has the unenviable position of a 0% score on Rotten Tomatoes). He’s also primarily making thrillers and horror movies, which are cheap to make, but often difficult to find anything fresh to say narratively.
Why Nic Cage Makes So Many More Movies Than Most Leading Actors
Between 2018-2019 Nicolas Cage starred in 14 movies. In comparison, other leading actors of his era - such as Tom Hanks, Tom Cruise, and Will Smith - averaged 2-3 movies each over the same time frame. It's a frenetic pace for any actor, and one of the reasons for his proclivity for making so many movies is his attempts to overturn his finances. It's far rarer to have a new Nicolas Cage movie get a wide theatrical release than it was 20 years ago. The perception of this without context would be that Nicolas Cage has suffered the "dimming star" effect that strikes down so many actors, aging out of leading man roles, and cast aside to make room for the next generation. The reality though would be the other way around. While Nicolas Cage still has some roles in studio productions, he made the decision to largely abandon Hollywood in favor of independent movies, which can be made at a far more rapid pace.
In an interview with Variety, Nicolas Cage stated that the reason for this was that big-budget blockbusters came with commercial constraints on his performance, whereas independent films give him "more freedom to experiment and be fluid." That freedom and fluidity though is often encased within a bad movie. Still, there is something very Cage-esque about the fact that he'd rather star in a bad movie and give an honest performance than be bland in a Hollywood blockbuster. Outside of his financial issues, the other reason for his productivity is that Nicolas Cage loves acting. The actor has no intention of retiring and believes that keeping busy makes him a better man, curbing his self-destructive tendencies that led to his financial problems. While he may be aware that some of the films he's in aren't very good, he always strives to deliver the best performance he can, and elevate the material.
No, Nic Cage Doesn't Only Make Bad Movies
Nicolas Cage's recent tenancy to accept almost any role he's offered does result in plenty of bad movies, but there are also good movies in between them. In recent years he's had a string of critically acclaimed movies. 2018's psychedelic horror Mandy reminded audiences of Cage's dramatic potential as an actor, in between a healthy dose of his trademark outbursts. 2019's Colour Out of Space was a hit on the festival circuit and adapted H.P. Lovecraft in a new and interesting way. 2021's Pig meanwhile is perhaps Nicolas Cage's best movie in years, playing against the audience's expectations with a raw and measured performance.
The issue with Nicolas Cage's good movies is that they're released within the assortment of his bad movies, watering down their impact. Of course, he's at a stage in his career where he'd rather enjoy the work than worry about the public perception of his performances. Notwithstanding this, it's a shame that his more notable performances in recent years haven't been more recognized by his peers due to his "bad movie" reputation.
Why Even Nic Cage's Bad Movies Are Worth Celebrating
Ethan Hawke hit the nail on the head in his summation of Nicolas Cage's contribution to cinema. Writing on Reddit, Hawke said that "He's the only actor since Marlon Brando that's actually done anything new with the art of acting." Cage's unique approach to acting stems from his unflinching commitment to a creative and unpredictable performance, striving for something new at every opportunity. That approach would inevitably conflict with Hollywood's penchant for safe, constant, and franchisable content, and why he's more comfortable in the independent arena at the moment.
Unlike some of his fellow actors who have been relegated to direct-to-video movies, Nicolas Cage doesn't phone in a performance. He's committed to the character he's created and will give it his all no matter what. That earnest approach is to be applauded, even though it can elicit unintentional guffaws within the context of a bad movie. Still, it's always entertaining watching Nicolas Cage do what he was born to do, regardless of whether he's in a bad movie or not.