Nicolas Cage Defends Marvel Movies From Scorsese and Coppola Criticisms

As superhero movies continue to be a dominating force at the box office, acclaimed filmmakers in recent years have expressed their frustrations regarding the spectacles, either admitting they don’t particularly enjoy them or that the massive productions have caused industry complications, but Nicolas Cage recently defended the Marvel model. The actor first pondered why filmmakers like Martin Scorsese or Francis Ford Coppola, his uncle, would voice their criticisms of the genre at all, while also pointing out that, in his experience, superhero movies haven’t made it as difficult to produce mid-budget movies as some filmmakers believe it has.

“Yeah, why do they do that?” Cage asked GQ in regards to criticisms from auteur directors. “I don’t understand the conflict. I don’t agree with them on that perception or opinion.”

Both Scorsese and Coppola made remarks about comic book films back in 2019, with Scorsese expressing that he didn’t personally enjoy them and that he didn’t believe them to be “cinema,” while Coppola echoed those remarks, expressing that each Marvel film was a formula that would merely be repeated.

“I think that the movies that I make, like Pig or Joe, are not in any kind of conflict with Marvel movies,” Cage pointed out. “I mean, I don’t think the Marvel movie had anything to do with the end of the ‘tweener.’ By tweener, I mean the $30- to $50-million budget movie. I think movies are in good shape. If you look at Power of the Dog, or if you look at Spencer, or any of Megan Ellison’s movies. I think that there’s still Paul Thomas Anderson.”

Cage would go on to point out just how much the state of comic book movies has evolved since his time in that realm, and how the overall genre is ultimately a good thing for audiences at large.

“Marvel has done a really excellent job of entertaining the whole family,” the actor expressed. “They put a lot of thought into it. I mean, it’s definitely had a big progression from when I was doing the first two Ghost Rider movies. Kevin Feige, or whoever is behind that machine, has found a masterful way of weaving the stories together and interconnecting all the characters.”

Cage continued, “What could be wrong with wholesome entertainment that is appealing to the parents and the children, and gives people something to look forward to? I just, I don’t see what the issue is.”

Cage will next be seen in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent.

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