Over 20 years after winning an Oscar for Best Actor, 2018 brought what many believe to be Nicolas Cage’s best performance yet with “Mandy.” The horror-thriller became an instant classic among genre fans for its incredible visuals and utilizing Cage’s more eccentric sensibilities in a perfect way. Much of that is thanks to the direction from Panos Cosmatos. And according to a recent interview, the director hints that we might not have seen the last of him and Cage collaborating.
While we can’t know this for sure, there’s enough video evidence to show that it takes strong direction to not use Cage in a thoughtful and unique way, but also to make sure that the actor’s…unique acting style doesn’t overpower a film. There are dozens of films that show what happens when the director just doesn’t know how to use the Academy Award-winning actor properly.
That being said, Cosmatos thinks he knows the trick. You just have to embrace the Cage-iness and use it to your advantage.
“I just have a huge amount of admiration for him as a performer and his range of ability,” said the filmmaker in an interview with THR. “And having this chance to work with him, I really wanted to tap into almost every aspect of his ability. And hopefully in a way that feels organic and integral to the movie. But I really didn’t want to miss this opportunity to play with Nicolas Cage. I mean, how often do you get a Nicolas Cage action figure to play with?”
And because their first collaboration was so successful, Cosmatos says that he’d love to work with the actor again in the future. “Absolutely, yeah. We’ve talked. I know we would like to work with each other again,” said the director.
But even though he knows he’d like to work with Cage again, that doesn’t mean it’s going to happen right away. In fact, the filmmaker admits he has no clue what’s next for him.
“I’m not working on anything. I need to just take some time and sort of meditate,” said Cosmatos. “I need to go look at one of my weird notebooks and see what jumps out at me and what I connect with, and what comes at night, what I can get obsessed with. I feel happy working in the low-budget realm, doing stuff that is a little bit more esoteric, and personal.”
If “Mandy” and his previous film, “Beyond the Black Rainbow,” are any indication, we can’t wait to see what Cosmatos has up his sleeve next.