London Academy of Media Film TV

EARLY LIFE

Nicolas Cage

Born Nicolas Kim Coppola in Long Beach, California, on 7th January 1964, Nicolas is the youngest of three children to dancer/choreographer Joy and literature professor August Coppola. His grandfather Carmine was a composer, aunt Talia (Shire) is an actress, and uncle Francis Ford is an Oscar-winning director. He is also cousin to director Sofia Coppola, and actor Jason Schwartzman. He studied at Beverly Hills High School whilst acting in his brother Christopher’s short films, before abandoning his studies at the age of 15 to enrol at the American Conservatory Theatre in 1979. That is where he made his debut performance in a production of Golden Boy.

ASPIRING ACTOR

Nicolas made his television debut in the variety special, Best of Times, in 1981. His film debut came a year later in the Cameron Crowe-penned comedy Fast Times At Ridgmont High. 1983 marked several milestones in Nicolas’ early career; he landed his first lead role in Valley Girl, adopted the surname Cage (in reference to Marvel superhero Luke Cage) to avoid accusations of nepotism, and was featured in his first collaboration with his uncle, Francis Ford Coppola, Rumble Fish. From there, Nicolas’ acting career began to heat up and he soon earned himself a reputation as a distinctive method actor thanks to performances in Birdy (1984), for which he pulled out one of his own teeth, and in further collaborations with his uncle including Peggy Sue Got Married (1986). Nicolas continued to take varied roles throughout the late 1980s including the lead in the Coen Brothers’ Raising Arizona (1987), his first box office hit Moonstruck (1987), more method madness in Vampire’s Kiss (1988), and David Lynch’s Wild at Heart (1990). However, the role that would define his early career was in Mike Figgis’ 1995 drama Leaving Las Vegas for which he won an Oscar. Not content with critical acclaim, Nicolas sought to reinvent himself as an action star and began a lucrative partnership with producer Jerry Bruckheimer.

ACTION HERO

Box office hits The Rock (1996), Con Air (1997), and John Woo’s Face/Off (1997) helped to seal his burgeoning status as an action hero and earned him a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1998. Ever difficult to pigeonhole, Nicolas balanced his latest status with yet more diverse roles, including the romantic fantasy City of Angels (1998), and Martin Scorsese’s Bringing Out The Dead (1999). However, his box office fortunes have not fared quite so well since, with the Bruckheimer produced Gone in 60 Seconds (2000), National Treasure series (2004, 2007), and Marvel comic-adaptation Ghost Rider (2007) being the only bona-fide blockbusters amid a string of flops. He hit a career nadir in 2006 with the release of Neil Labute’s poorly received The Wicker Man, for which he earned a Razzie nomination, and has infrequently regained critical favour since thanks to box office bombs Next (2007), Bangkok Dangerous (2008), and Season of the Witch (2011). Nicolas did earn himself a second Oscar nomination for his dual role in Spike Jonze’s acclaimed Adaptation (2002), and has recently received praise for turns in Kick-Ass (2010), and Bad Lieutenant (2010).

Nicolas Cage in the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced National Treasure 2

PERSONAL INTERESTS

An avid comic book reader, Nicolas is thought to have a large collection and has created his own series called Voodoo Child. Aside from inspiring his own screen name, Nicolas’ passion for comics has furhter seeped into his personal life; naming his second son Kal-el (after Superman’s birthname). He is also a longtime fan of Elvis Presley. Nicolas has more recently set his talents towards producing and directing. His company, Saturn Films, released his directorial debut, Sonny, in 2002, and he served as an executive producer on the likes of Lord of War (2005) and The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (2010).

PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS

Nicolas has been married three times; to Patricia Arquette (1995-2001), Lisa Marie Presley (2002-2004), and currently to Alice Kim (since 2004) with whom he shares a son, Kal-el, born 2005. He also has another son, Weston, born 1990, with actress Christina Fulton. He is currently represented by Richard Lovett of Creative Artists Agency.

Be an action hero yourself – try acting today at London Academy

Share on Facebook