When Nicolas Cage Was In A “Dark Period” & Had To Sell His Assets To Pay Off Debts, “Work Was Always My…”
Nicolas Cage, a Hollywood star known for his eccentricities, went from a $150 million fortune to a $6 million debt. How did this quirky icon bounce back?
Nicolas Cage once had to sell his assets to pay off debts ( Photo Credit – Wikimedia )
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In a revealing chat on CBS’s 60 Minutes, Cage peeled back the curtain on his “dark period.” He spilled the beans about how his love for real estate turned into a financial horror story. “I was over-invested in real estate,” he lamented. He bought up properties faster than he could say “National Treasure,” only to watch the housing market crash like a bad B-movie. Talk about a plot twist!
To escape the clutches of creditors and the IRS, Cage made a bold move to Las Vegas—a tax-friendly playground where the dice roll in your favor. His strategy? Pumping out multiple films a year like a movie-making machine. “Work was always my guardian angel,” he said. “Even if the movie ultimately is crummy… I’m not phoning it in. I care, every time.” That’s right! Even when the script was questionable, Cage brought his A-game, turning bad flicks into his personal comeback saga.
And what a comeback it was! The Oscar-winning actor didn’t just bounce back; he practically catapulted into a new financial orbit without needing a bankruptcy parachute. But let’s talk about the wild side of Cage’s spending habits that got him into hot water in the first place.
Imagine owning 15 properties! Cage was living the dream (or nightmare?) with an eye-popping $25 million waterfront mansion in Newport Beach, a $15.7 million estate in Rhode Island, and a rather spooky LaLaurie mansion in New Orleans—known for its haunted reputation. As Cage once joked, “You know, other people have beachfront property; I have ghost front property.” Now that’s some real estate with a twist!
But wait, there’s more! The guy didn’t stop at houses. He splurged on a nine-foot-tall pyramid tomb—because why not? He also tossed down $150,000 on a pet octopus (yes, an octopus!). Not to mention, he snagged the first Superman comic and a 70-million-year-old dinosaur skull for a cool $276,000. Spoiler alert: the dinosaur skull turned out to be stolen, and he had to return it. Let’s just say he’s had his fair share of “Jurassic” surprises!
Cage’s taste for the finer things extended to flashy cars, too. He shelled out $446,820 on a rare 1971 Lamborghini Miura SVJ once owned by the Shah of Iran. When he saw it, he thought, “That’s the car!” Not to be outdone, he rolled up to his CBS interview in a gleaming golden Lamborghini inspired by the 1968 film Toby Dammit. “It’s fun!” he said, radiating the kind of charisma that only Cage can deliver.
Today, Nicolas Cage stands tall as a legend in his own right. From the depths of financial despair to reclaiming his spot in Hollywood, his journey is as wild as one of his movies. And with a new pet monitor lizard he affectionately calls his “black dragon,” it’s clear that Cage’s eccentric adventures are just getting started. So, here’s to Nicolas Cage—proof that even when life throws you a financial curveball, you can always bounce back with a dramatic flair!
