Nicolas Cage’s First Reaction to ‘Unbearable Weight’ Pitch Was ‘Absolute Horror’

variety.com:

Jordan Moreau Nicolas Cage has transcended pop culture. The legendary actor has won an Oscar, starred in both blockbusters and indie titles, inspired internet memes and stolen the Declaration of Independence.

Now, he’s being honored in the most Cage way possible, by starring as a version of himself, called Nick Cage, in the new Lionsgate movie “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.”However, when Cage first got the pitch for the meta-comedy-drama-action film, his first response was “absolute horror.”“There was no muscle in my body that told me I should play a character named Nick Cage, it was absolute horror,” he told Variety at the New York premiere on Sunday. “However, the director wrote me a very intelligent, sensitive letter, and in that letter I knew he was a true film enthusiast that likes some of the earlier work.

He wanted to make a movie that was about people, not about caricatures or cartoons.” Just like the real Cage, the film’s Nick Cage is a world-famous actor, but one who’s on the verge of retirement and is a “highly neurotic” and “anxiety-filled interpretation.” Before calling it quits from acting, Nick Cage accepts an offer from a billionaire fan, played by Pedro Pascal, to attend his birthday party.

However, the super fan turns out to be a super crime boss, and Cage must escape using the action skills from his movie career.“It was a balancing act.