We’re two for two when it comes to the Spider-Verse movies. Even for those who don’t typically go see arguably “kid-focused” animated fare, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse are masterpieces bolstered by genuinely stunning animation and the heavy involvement of Phil Lord and Chris Miller. But equally important is the note-perfect casting. Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, Brian Tyree Henry, Lauren Vélez, Jake Johnson, Mahershala Ali, Oscar Isaac, they couldn’t be any better. And it says a lot that that lengthy list of names didn’t even capture all of the performers who gave their all to these two movies.
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For instance, action movie veteran Nicolas Cage, who was clearly having a ton of fun voicing Spider-Man Noir in Into the Spider-Verse. A performance that intentionally brings to mind Humphrey Bogart in The Maltese Falcon and the snappy line deliveries of White Heat‘s James Cagney, it was another example of how Cage gives his all to his rolls. And, pretty soon, he’ll be returning to that role in Spider-Noir. Today is Cage’s 62nd birthday, and to celebrate we’re going to look at his history of playing superhero role and explain why Spider-Noir is going to be his best project in the subgenre to date.
The History of Nicolas Cage in Superhero Movies & Spider-Noir
As is well known by this point in time, Cage’s very first role was supposed to be Superman in Tim Burton’s Superman Lives. He would have been the first actor to take over the role after Christopher Reeve put his stamp on it. The project was never made, though it did get fairly far into the pre-production process, with photos of Cage in the suit eventually leaking online decades later.
Even still, the actor did end up getting his chance to play the Man of Steel, though not quite as it was intended. First was as a vocal role in Teen Titans Go! To the Movies, where he voiced Superman to Jimmy Kimmel’s Batman. Then he actually shot a scene for the 2023 financial disaster The Flash, but instead of him standing in an alternate dimension watching the death of a universe, he was shown in a big fight against a massive spider (the intended ending of Superman Lives). Cage wasn’t thrilled with the fact those behind the film altered what he showed up to shoot.
What actually ended up being Cage’s first movie wasn’t in a DC project; it was in a Marvel film: Ghost Rider. It’s an odd duck of a movie, playing a dark character and world too safe to secure a PG-13 rating. It also didn’t allow Cage to really go overboard in his performance, which was actually appropriate for a motorcycle stuntman who makes a deal with the devil and essentially becomes his bounty hunter. That said, Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance did allow Cage to take things up to an eleven, and it still didn’t make much of a critical or commercial impact.
Even still, Ghost Rider proved that Cage could take on a superhero role in his mid-40s and sell it well enough. All he needed was a better script. And, in Kick-Ass, he got just that. Why didn’t we include his Big Daddy in Kick-Ass as one of his two Marvel superhero roles in the title? Because while the original comic was published by Marvel, Kick-Ass was predominately an Image Comics product.
But, as great as Big Daddy and Kick-Ass are, it’s Spider-Man Noir that stands as his best (and biggest) superhero role and, soon enough, we’re really going to see him get into action. Not just because MGM+ and Prime Video’s Spider-Noir is live-action, but also because Cage’s Ben Reilly isn’t a part of a Spider-ensemble this time…he’s literally the star of the show.
Filming ran from late 2024 to early 2025, utilizing black-and-white cameras to craft a convincing film noir vibe. We’re going to get to see Spider-Man grapple with his status as a past-his-prime superhero and fill the heroic hole inside him once more by taking on a crime boss (played by Brendan Gleeson, who just made his comic book movie debut in 2024 with Joker: Folie à Deux). Fortunately, Spider-Noir sounds like it’s going to be far better than the misguided Joker sequel.
No concrete release date has been announced for Spider-Noir, but it’s confirmed to be at some point in 2026. Viewers will have the option to watch it in black-and-white or color and it will run for eight episodes, each about 45 minutes in length.
What is your favorite Nicolas Cage movie? Let us know in the comments.
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