Nicolas Cage Originally ‘Wanted No Part’ Of Playing Himself In ‘The Unbearable Weight Of Massive Talent’

etcanada.com:

Nicolas Cage has been earning rave reviews for playing a skewed version of himself in the new film “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent”.

However, in a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Cage admitted he initially passed on the project — more than once. “I turned it down three or four times,” Cage said of the film, in which he plays a fictionalized version of Nicolas Cage, desperate for money when he reluctantly accepts $1 million to appear at a party hosted by a wealthy Spanish fan (Pedro Pascal), where he winds up confronting many of his most celebrated past roles. READ MORE: Nicolas Cage Has Had Enough Of Acting In New ‘Unbearable Weight Of Massive Talent’ Trailer It was an impassioned letter from the film’s writer and director, Tom Gormican, that convinced him to take a closer look. “I wanted no part of it,” Cage said of his initial reaction. “But when I got Tom’s letter, then I thought, ‘OK, he’s not just trying to mock so-called Nick Cage; there is a real interest in some of the earlier work.'” Meanwhile, Cage also offered a blunt assessment of the flurry of film roles he’s taken on in the years since the IRS slapped a $6.2 million tax lien on him back in 2009, ultimately resulting in Cage paying more than $14 million in back taxes. READ MORE: Nicolas Cage Goes Viral With Story About Horse Named Rain Man That ‘Wanted To Kill Me’ “I’m not the kind of guy that’s going to file for bankruptcy.

Whatever happened to me in 2009, I made the decision to work my way out of it,” Cage explained. “But I only did movies where I thought I could bring something authentic to them.

I turned a lot of crap down. But I do think that the constant amount of working — which is probably going to continue — has made