Nicolas Cage has the reputation, due to the impressive number of films that are released each year featuring the actor, of taking almost every job presented to him. Obviously, this isn’t the case, but the joke stands. But the question is never posed about what film Cage would like to make if he was ever given the chance? Well, THR asked that question as part of the recent Actors Roundtable discussion featuring Cage and other awards-contending performers. And his answer to the question might surprise you.
When asked what film he would have liked to make that he hasn’t gotten the chance to, Nicolas Cage brought up something he called “very embarrassing” because it deals with a famous family member and one of the most famous sequels of all time.
“So Uncle [Francis Ford Coppola] was doing ‘Godfather III,’ and I said, ‘I really think I ought to be in your movie, Uncle. I really think it’s a good idea if you would cast me. I think I could play this part,’” revealed Cage. “He was going to cast Andy Garcia, and I said, ‘But I just see myself more as James Caan’s son, and he’s playing Sonny’s son. He’s not playing Michael’s son. He’s Sonny’s son. I just feel a little more James Caan.’ It just wasn’t going to happen. Nope, not going to happen. So that was a movie I didn’t get let in that I really wanted to be in. There.”
Recently, we saw Francis Ford Coppola attempt to redeem his ‘Godfather III’ feature with a new cut of the film. Sadly, he didn’t bring Cage along to film new scenes for it. (Obviously, we’re being a bit silly.) But you have to imagine how different the ‘Godfather’ sequel would have been with a young Cage on screen. You have to remember that the era we’re talking about featured Cage performances in “Peggy Sue Got Married,” “Raising Arizona,” and “Vampire’s Kiss.” So, he was really starting to come into his own.
Sadly, we won’t ever get to see Cage’s performance in ‘Godfather III,’ but it’s fair to say that it might have overshadowed the questionable performance of Sofia Coppola, for sure.