Since reports of Henry Cavill's potential exit broke, Superman fans have been contemplating the future of the on-screen Man of Steel. Some even looking to the past of one actor who once slipped into the blue and red suit in the late 90s: Nicolas Cage. The actor was once attached to a Tim Burton project called Superman Lives that never came to be. It hasn't stopped fans from fantasizing about the potential of Cage as the DC superhero, because it would have no doubt been memorable. While Cage did lend his voice to a cartoon-y Superman in this summer's Teen Titans Go! To the Movies, he thinks his on-screen Superman days are long gone. The actor is still a huge fan of the comic book character though -- his youngest son is even named Kal-El, he was asked what Superman villain he might be interested in, to which he said:
Oh, that would be GREAT. I'd make a great Lex Luthor!
As vivid memories of his villainous role in 1997's Face/Off hang over our heads, Nicolas Cage as Lex Luthor is an interesting idea to contemplate. The actor has been known to play quite a few eccentric characters throughout his career, so giving him a crack at the iconic billionaire baddie could bring freshness to the role. Some of the strongest comic book genre films have weighed their villains just as heavily as their heroes, so while Cage knows he wouldn't hit the gym and transform into a superpowered savior anymore, playing Lex could be his ticket in.
Despite Nicolas Cage's comments to The Guardian, the most recent Lex Luthor (played by Jesse Eisenberg) isn't the actor in reports to exit the DCEU. While Eisenberg's future as the villain is anybody's guess, he has expressed interest in returning to play the character. Lex first showed up in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in 2016. But considering the reception of the film and with both Henry Cavill and Ben Affleck potentially leaving their characters, Eisenberg may have seen his last days as the baldheaded billionaire already. Smallville'sLex Luthor Michael Rosenbaum also showed his willingness to step back into the role following the news about Cavill, so Cage can step in line with him.
While in recent years, Nicolas Cage has become more of a sweetheart of the internet memes than of the big screen, the actor is making quite the comeback this year. His recent indie-horror flick, Mandy has been highly-praised by critics, bringing him back into the spotlight and interesting the likes of Jason Blum for a potential Blumhouse collaboration. The actor will also enter the Spider-Verse this holiday season as Spider-Man Noir in the animated film, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, coming to theaters on December 14.
