In Longlegs, Nic Cage plays a chilling serial killer who does unspeakable things to innocent families and children in the most gruesome way imaginable. For the role, Cage recently admitted that he was inspired by….his mother. Because family can be tough!
Cage was quick to clarify, “Not that she was Satanic,” Cage said, of his mother, Joy Vogelsang, who died in 2021. He explained to AP, “In my approach to try and get more personal with my film performances, I’ve been trying to find a constructive place to put my memories of my mother.”
The actor has previously mentioned his mother’s struggles with mental illness, which is something that led him to acting. “She was plagued with mental illness for most of my childhood,” He told Playboy in 1996. She was institutionalized for years and went through shock treatments. She would go into these states that lasted for years,” he explained at the time, adding, “I do consider her the driving force in my creativity.”
Earlier this month, Cage admitted to The New Yorker that the memory of his mother is what inspired him to join the film in the first place. “For some reason, when I read the script, I heard my mother’s voice. And then I met with [the director Oz] Perkins at the Polo Lounge. And the first thing he said to me was, ‘Nic, this is a movie about my mother.’ And I said, ‘Well, that’s very interesting, Oz, because I was just thinking that I want to make this character about my mom.'” It seems like it paid off for him, as Longlegs could be on track to become Neon’s biggest film.
Cage added, “Gosh, I channeled my dad for Dracula and I channeled my mom for Longlegs. What does that say about my childhood?” Maybe next he will make a movie inspired by his uncle, Francis Ford Coppola. He must be a great source of inspiration.
(Via AP)
