Nicolas Cage knows his way around a superhero role. After all, between turns in films like Ghost Rider and Kick-Ass, he showed that he could pull off plenty of badass maneuvers as a caped protagonist. That said, some fans continue to wonder what he would be like as a supervillain, and it looks like the idea has not gone unnoticed by Cage himself. In fact, when asked to point out some comic book characters that he would be attracted to, Cage admitted in a recent interview that he would be interested in portraying The Joker or Doctor Doom if the opportunities to do so arose. Cage explained:
I mean, I think my comic book days are kind of... I'm on to other things, but I always thought I'd make a great Joker and I always thought that I would've been a good villain in one of the Marvel [movies] like Doctor Doom. But, Doctor Doom you have to wear that mask, but I thought the story leading up to Doctor Doom could've been interesting. At this point if I was to go back into the format it would probably have to be as a villain.
Talk about a Sophie's choice. Nicolas Cage has an inherent ability to bring a manic insanity to his roles that I think would make him a good choice for a unique new take on The Joker. Moreover, he also can imbue his characters with a quiet vulnerability that underscores their darkness -- which could make him a similarly good choice to play a pre-mask Doctor Doom in a potential Fantastic Four reboot focusing on his origin story. That's just my take, though.
As far as opportunity goes, although he's just chatting possibilities in his conversation with JoBlo, there's still time for Nicolas Cage to get his hands on one of these roles. For The Joker, DC is currently in the process of developing an origin movie showing how he turned into a grinning maniac; Joaquin Phoenix is circling the project, but he has not confirmed his status as the new Joker, and there could be room for someone like Cage to move in. On the Doctor Doom side of things, there's currently a Doctor Doom movie in development, with many fans also assuming that the character could enter the Marvel Cinematic Universe at some point as the Disney-Fox merger finalizes.
Despite our enthusiasm to potentially see Nicolas Cage make good on his comments and appear as The Joker or Doctor Doom at some point, we also need to temper these remarks with a healthy dose of skepticism. Even by his own admission, Cage seems "on to other things" at this stage of his career, so it's hard to determine if he will even find himself up for either of these roles. Having said that, speaking in purely hypothetical terms, the idea of him playing Doom or Mr. J seems like a genuinely intriguing prospect. If nothing else, Cage probably has a better chance of getting cast as The Joker than The Room's Tommy Wiseau, who has also lobbied for the role in recent days.
CinemaBlend will keep you posted with more updates related to all of the casting in the superhero movie world as new information becomes available. For now, check out our movie premiere guide to see what other films are set to debut this year, and check out Nicolas Cage in The Humanity Bureau, which is currently available on VOD and in select theaters.
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