Nicolas Cage to play John Madden in new biopic
Although he’s played a smattering of real-life figures during his career, Nicolas Cage hasn’t made many biopics in the truest sense, but that’s about to change in a major way after he signed on to play NFL legend, John Madden.
One of the reasons why Cage may never have shown much interest in the biographical drama is because it’s hardly conducive to his signature style of performance. Although Adaptation proved to be the exception to the rule after Charlie Kaufman invented his own fictional twin to let Cage play double duty and have a ball.
Additionally, Cage played hitman ‘Mad Dog’ Coll in The Cotton Club, sporting hero Ned Hanlan in The Boy in Blue, police officer John McLoughlin in World Trade Centre, and Charles McVeigh in USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage, but Madden is an altogether different type of character.
Not only will it presumably require Cage to sit in the makeup chair and undergo a drastic transformation, but he’ll need to do justice to an iconic figure in American pop culture. Madden coached the Oakland Raiders in the 1970s and led the team to its first Super Bowl win before spending three decades as the voice of the NFL as its most well-known and marketable commentator.
Madden’s name is also a massive one in the video game world thanks to the long-running console series Madden NFL, which started in 1988 and continues to this day, with the franchise selling close to 150 million copies during that period. David O Russell will write and direct, and the filmmaker celebrated the casting news in a statement.
“Nicolas Cage, one of our greatest and most original actors, will portray the best of the American spirit of originality, fun, and determination in which anything is possible as beloved national legend John Madden,” he said. “Together with the ferocious style, focus, and inspired individualism of Al Davis, owner of the underdog Oakland Raiders, the feature will be about the joy, humanity and genius that was John Madden in a wildly inventive, cool world of the 1970s.”
With Cage in the midst of a long-overdue resurgence that’s seen him return to top form in a number of disparate films, there’s no reason why he won’t end up on the Oscars shortlist for ‘Best Actor’ whenever the Madden movie releases.
After all, Russell has directed Christian Bale, Melissa Leo, and Jennifer Lawrence to Academy Awards glory, while Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper, Jacki Weaver, and Robert De Niro have all been nominated on his watch, not to mention the writer, director, and producer himself has five nominations.
Never Miss A Scene
The Far Out Film Newsletter
All the latest film news from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.