Nicolas Cage

Nicolas Cageis an Academy Award winner and one of the most versatile actors working today, equally known for his poignant portrayals in both drama and comedy. He was recently seen in The Sorcerer's Apprentice, his seventh collaboration with producer Jerry Bruckheimer; the action-comedy Kick-Ass, directed by Matthew Vaughn; and Season of the Witch, directed by Dominic Sena. Cage is now filming Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, for directors Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor (Crank).

In 2009, Cage starred in Werner Herzog's critically acclaimed drama Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans as a drug- and gambling-addicted detective in post-Katrina New Orleans. Prior to this film, he lent his voice to the animated features G-Force, a family adventure produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, and Astro Boy, based on the classic manga series. Cage also starred in the sci-fi thriller Knowing and Bangkok Dangerous, an action thriller.

In 2007, Cage starred as Johnny Blaze in Ghost Rider, written and directed by Mark Steven Johnson. The film, based on the Marvel comic book character, immediately set a new record as the highest-grossing debut for a film opening on the President's Day weekend. That same year, Cage starred in the worldwide box office success National Treasure: Book of Secrets. His memorable performance as an alcoholic drinking himself to death in the drama Leaving Las Vegas, directed by Mike Figgis, earned Cage the Oscar® for Best Actor as well as a Golden Globe Award® and Best Actor prizes from the New York Film Critics Circle, the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, the Chicago Film Critics and the National Board of Review. Cage further solidified his leading man status when he received Academy Award, Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild and British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) nominations for his dual role as twin brothers Charlie and Donald Kaufman in Spike Jonze's quirky comedy Adaptation, which co-starred Meryl Streep and Chris Cooper.

Other recent film credits include Neil LaBute's The Wicker Man, Oliver Stone's World Trade Center, Gore Verbinski's The Weather Man and Andrew Niccol's Lord of War. Cage was also heard as the voice of Zoc in the animated film The Ant Bully. Cage made his film directorial debut in 2002 with Sonny, for which he cast an impressive group of actors including Golden Globe winner James Franco, Mena Suvari, Brenda Blethyn and Harry Dean Stanton. The film was accepted at the 2002 Deauville Film Festival.

Cage's many other credits include Next, Matchstick Men, Windtalkers, Captain Corelli's Mandolin, The Family Man, Bringing Out the Dead, Eight Millimeter, Snake Eyes, City of Angels, Face/Off, Kiss of Death, Guarding Tess, It Could Happen to You, Red Rock West, Honeymoon in Vegas, Raising Arizona, Vampire's Kiss, Peggy Sue Got Married, Valley Girl, Racing with the Moon, The Cotton Club and Rumble Fish. It was Cage's portrayal of a tormented Vietnam vet in Birdy that first established him as a serious actor. Directed by Alan Parker, Birdy won the jury prize at the Cannes Film Festival. Cage then received a Golden Globe nomination as Best Actor for his role as Cher's lover in Moonstruck. David Lynch's Wild at Heart, starring Cage and Laura Dern, won the Palme d'Or at the 1990 Cannes Film Festival.

Other honors include a 1993 Golden Globe nomination for his role in Honeymoon in Vegas, a prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award from the Montreal World Film Festival in 1996 and the first-ever Distinguished Decade in Film Award at ShoWest in 2001. Cage was also honored by the prestigious American Cinematheque in 2001.

In 2009, the actor was named Goodwill Ambassador for Global Justice for the United Nations. He then traveled to Africa to undertake a mission with the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime in Gulu, Uganda; Mombasa, Kenya and Nairobi, Kenya. There, Cage met with child soldiers, gang members, prison inmates, judges and magistrates to help stop human trafficking, child slavery and kidnapping. Cage is also a Luminary for Amnesty International and helps with their human rights efforts.

Cage was raised in Long Beach, CA, and lived there until his family moved to San Francisco when he was 12. Cage began acting at age 15, when he enrolled in San Francisco's American Conservatory Theater. He later moved to Los Angeles and while still a high school student, landed a role in the television film "The Best of Times." He made his feature film debut in Fast Times at Ridgemont High.

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