Nicolas Cage: From Blockbuster Hero to Low-Budget Super Star
Nicolas Cage might not be the blockbuster star he was once. There is something known as the post Oscars curse where Oscar-winning Best Actors and Best Actresses, like Hailey Berry, start in lackluster movies (Catwoman) right after giving the finest performance in their life (Monster’s Ball).
Nicolas Cage broke this notion by not only becoming more successful after winning the Academy Award for Best Actor for Leaving Las Vegas in 1996. But also by becoming an action star with 1996’s The Rock (which is still Michael Bay’s only movie with a fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes).
The Downfall Starts
According to my article, Nicolas Cage Palm Reading, the downfall of Cage’s career was round about the same his fate line ended on his head line denoting that 1. A person would become a millionaire by the age of 35 (which he did become). 2. A person’s career might not be as fulfilling as it was before they had entered their mid-30s.
Nicolas Cage Palm Reading
Those too lazy to read the article can check out the video reading of Cage’s palm below.
Prelude to B-Movie Stardom
Despite the memes and countless articles stating that Cage’s career has finished, he has found a reawakening in Hollywood’s low-budget film industry. His latest movies, which could be stated as an unrelated horror trilogy, comprise of (in order of newest release) Willy’s Wonderland, Color Out of Space and Mandy. The latter are most likely to become cult classics in the future.
If we are to note the release date of the last Nicolas Cage wide theatrical release where he played the lead role, it’s the Christian post-apocalyptic film, Left Behind (2014), based on the popular Christian-fiction book series of the same name.
And it was a hit! Despite the majority of Cage’s big-budget films (where he played the main role) in the 2010s flopping at the box, there was certain exceptions to this fact:
Pre-2014 B-Movies
Cage suffered a number of setbacks which led to him taking roles left and right, but another reason for taking B-movie roles is also because Nicolas Cage must’ve been tired of not being the A-list star he once was. Ironically, with movies like The Frozen Ground and Joe, some of his 2010s low-budget films are actually superior to his high-budget counterparts in the same timeline.
Below I list reviews of the films which serve as a prelude to Nicolas Cage’s eventual and current B-movie career.
The Start of Nicolas Cage’s B-Movie Career
Below I list reviews of the films which serve as the starting point to Nicolas Cage’s low-budget journey.
Will Nicolas Cage Make a Big-Budget Comeback?
Unbeknownst to most, Nicolas Cage occasionally stars in big-budget films, which have all been box office hits: Snowden, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, and The Croods 2.
But note the common denominator between all the afore-mentioned flicks; none of them star Nicolas Cage as the lead character.
So, the real question is will Nicolas Cage make a big-budget live-action lead starring comeback? But does he really need to work harder than he is already? Every year he stars in such a diversity of roles which he might not have ever done before due to contractual commitments.
