On January 7, actor Nicolas Cage turned 62. He is a shining example of how success can make you lose your head. The actor is known for his extravagant behavior: he nearly squandered his $150 million fortune, got drunk numerous times, got married, and filed for divorce after four days of marriage.
Almost went bankrupt
In the mid-2000s, Nicolas Cage’s net worth was estimated to be between $150 and $200 million. Around that time, the actor began to engage in eccentric behavior: he made wild purchases, investing in real estate and counterfeit antiques. Among other things, he purchased a collection of mummified African pygmy heads for his home, allegedly believing that the owner of this strange “collection” would gain the strength of the fallen warriors.
By 2008, Cage’s financial situation was in decline due to poor investments. The actor himself admitted in interviews that he was close to bankruptcy. This forced him to immerse himself in work. Since 2010, Nicolas Cage has starred in approximately three films annually, and in 2017-2018, four to five films were released annually. The actor maintains this pace today: three films starring Cage were released in 2019.
Thanks to his film career, Cage has managed to improve his finances: he’s a millionaire again, though his net worth, according to media reports, is far from his “star” size. Today, according to various estimates, it could be between $50 and $75 million.
In an interview with Popcorn, Nicolas Cage assessed his near-financial ruin: “There are good investments and bad ones. I bought the first Superman comic for $150,000, and it was stolen. I returned it and resold it for $2 million. But the dinosaur skull turned out to be a bad buy. I bought it at auction for $276,000, but then it turned out to have been stolen, and I had to return it. Ultimately, my fortune was ruined by buying real estate, and the prices of real estate plummeted overnight. But I didn’t file for bankruptcy; I have pride.”
Married for the fifth time
Nicolas Cage has a habit of getting married. Officially, the actor has been married four times, including to Elvis Presley’s daughter. He has a weakness for young Asian women. In 2021, Cage married for the fifth time, to Japanese-American Riko Shibata. In 2022, the couple welcomed a daughter, August.
He sang stellar karaoke
In April 2019, Nicolas Cage appeared at a Los Angeles karaoke bar. The actor was again allegedly intoxicated. Cage took the microphone and sang Prince’s “Purple Rain,” while patrons filmed the actor on their phones.
The recording has been viewed over 500,000 times, although it certainly deserves more views: Cage sings so hard and so off-key, and at the same time tries to dance to the beat of the music, that it’s very funny.
Became a meme
In the fall of 2019, a seven-meter-tall statue of the infant Jesus, weighing approximately 900 kilograms, was erected in the Mexican town of Chimalhuacan. Media outlets reported that it was the largest statue in the world depicting Christ as an infant. However, after the publication, internet users concluded that the infant Jesus bears a striking resemblance to actor Nicolas Cage. The Hollywood actor has thus become an internet meme: the internet is now filled with images of Cage that bear a striking resemblance to Jesus.
Played himself
In 2022, Cage starred in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, playing Nicolas Cage. According to the script, the actor suffers numerous setbacks, his films flop at the box office, and he unsuccessfully tries to land a role with Quentin Tarantino. His dire financial situation forces him to agree to perform at a Mexican drug lord’s birthday party. At the same time, the CIA contacts him and asks him to act as his decoy.
He claims he is not an alcoholic.
Despite the fact that even eyewitnesses to Cage’s last wedding admitted that he was drunk, the actor claims that he does not suffer from alcoholism: “I am not an alcoholic, I never was, I was not a member of Alcoholics Anonymous and I have not been treated in clinics.”
