Notwithstanding all the name, fame and years of experience, Hollywood’s icon Nicolas Cage feels his journey’s just begun.
How did Nicolas Cage become a knight from the 14th century on a mission?
I must have been in the right place at the right time. In fact, I’ve always wanted to make a film in this period. When I was a five-year-old, my father built me a wooden castle in our backyard and I’d spend days in it imagining my heroic exploits. Moreover, it was a dream to experience beautiful, mountainous terrains and when I got the script of Season Of The Witch, I realised I’d be in the Austrian Alps on a horse — I just wanted to get there.
Is that the only reason why you agreed to be part of Season…?
It’s been long that I wanted to make a movie that was really scary, play a knight, hang out in the forest and that’s what Season… provided me with. I also got to work again with Chuck Roven (director). We made City Of Angels together and I wanted to go back into the supernatural with him again.
A heroic crusader’s role is no everyday phenomena. How much of preparation went into it?
A lot! From the grand castle inhabited by the all-powerful cardinal to the ancient babbey that holds the key to the film’s ultimate mystery, Season… is rich with painstakingly researched and reproduced images of life in the Middle Ages. Personally, I like to move and get physical in my movies and am much more comfortable in the outdoor. It’s been 30 years now and I don’t have the same body I had when I was 17, but I’m still doing it all. I spent three weeks training in England with Camilla Naprous and her team of horse riders, practising. The relationship between man and horse is ancient and beautiful and the connection turned out to be the most rewarding part of my experience during Season….
You have described Behmen as ‘the first’ conscientious objector, saying, “I admired... the idea of him breaking from whatever religious propaganda was forced upon him, and still finding an even closer connection with his faith and with God.” Do you relate to this on a personal level?
I am like Behmen because I can’t follow things the way they are presented to me. There was a lot of belief in witches and enchantment at that time, but the trials weren’t exactly fair. When Behmen and his team discover that the so-called witch is just a young farm girl who looks like she’s been grievously mistreated, they want to make sure that she gets a fair trial. That’s what I am in real life too.
A fascination with the paranormal and supernatural — where does that stem from?
It’s not quite like that, but I do admit that most of my movies are based on these themes. I like to do these roles because I can perform them slightly better than others. I’d say they are my forte.
Your tryst with fantasy continues with your comic book Voodoo Child that you have co-written with your son, Weston. Tell us more.
I’d say it’s my obsession. When Virgin Comics approached me about starting my own line of books, I told them I had no idea, but my son might. So, Weston and I brainstormed Voodoo Child. There were a lot of stories that deserve to be told from there, so we ventured into it.
Would you credit the stardom and talent to your genes, considering your illustrious family?
If I wanted to take favour from my family name, I wouldn’t have changed my name from Nicolas Kim Coppola to Nicolas Cage early in my career. I have worked in a wide range of films and no one can ignore the efforts I have put into acting.
16 years since an Academy Award — aren’t you raring for another one?
No, I am happy that I am playing all the roles that I always desired for.
How would you look back at a career spanning 30 years?
The journey has just begun. I’ve acted in many films, but I need to do as many good roles as I can.
