15 Funniest Nicolas Cage Movie Moments (That Weren’t Intended To Be Funny)

15 Funniest Nicolas Cage Movie Moments (That Weren't Intended To Be Funny)

Few actors are as intriguing as Nicolas Cage. The recent comedy The Unbearable Wight of Massive Talent had fun diving into Cage’s career, from his most iconic roles to his most infamous ones. From the indie movie star to the action hero to the guy in a bunch of straight-to-DVD movies, it is a fascinating career.

Cage has proven plenty of times that he is a very talented actor, but he is also very bold. Sometimes his choices are perfect for the movie he is in and sometimes they are so wildly wrong that they become entertaining for another reason. Here are some of Cage’s funniest moments that might not have been intentional.

SCREENRANT VIDEO OF THE DAY

Low Rider – Gone In Sixty Seconds (2000)

Nicolas Cage in Gone in 60 Seconds

Gone in Sixty Second is a fun popcorn heist movie that finds Cage leading a team of car thieves. The criminals have one day to steal several high-end automobiles which makes for an intense and wild ride.

RELATED: Best Nicolas Cage Movie References In The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent

But it is Cage’s unique way of pumping up his team that will elicit some giggles. He stoically demands the song “Low Rider” be played as he very seriously mediates. Cage’s intense concentration mixed with the goofy song choice is just silly.

Cake Fight – The Family Man (2000)

Nicolas Cage looking intense in The Family Man

It is not often fans see Cage in the kind of heartwarming romance movie like The Family Man but he is surprisingly effective. Cage stars as a rich businessman who is magically shown what his life would have been like if he stayed with his ex-girlfriend and had a family.

In one scene, Cage returns home to find his wife has eaten the piece of cake he had saved which leads to them playfully wrestling over the dessert. But while it is meant to be charming, there are moments when it seems Cage’s intensity makes it seem as though he could snap at any moment and turn this cake fight deadly.

Stealing A Bike – Pig (2021)

Cage’s recent performance in Pig was hailed as one of his best and one of the best thrillers of 2021. He plays a reclusive man who sets out to find his beloved pet pig which was stolen. Though it is one of his most reserved performances, Cage does find a moment to let out his trademark outburst.

As he sets out to confront the man who had his pig stolen, Cage steals a bike to ride. When the bike owner confronts him, Cage simply yells in his face and rides off. It is such an unexpected moment in an otherwise quiet role.

Rocket Man – The Rock (1996)

Nicolas Cage looking worried in The Rock

Though he eventually developed a reputation as an action hero, there was a time when Cage felt like a very odd choice for the genre. The Rock plays on that feeling quite well as he is cast as a meek biochemist called upon to save the day.

RELATED: 10 Best Nicolas Cage Movies, According to Ranker

During the climax of the movie, Cage is cornered by a villain. As a way of distracting him, he asks if he likes the song “Rocket Man” by Elton John. He then says, “You’re the Rocket Man” and launches a missile into the villain. It is such a convoluted set up to such a corny action movie one-liner that it is hard not to laugh.

How Did It Get Burned? – The Wicker Man (2006)

Nicolas Cage yelling in The Wicker Man (2006)

Though the original was a brilliant horror movie, the remake of The Wicker Man starring Nicolas Cage is a notorious movie that is so bad it’s good. Cage plays a police officer investigating a missing child case on a remote island inhabited by a strange cult.

The biggest problem with the movie is that the people on this island seem relatively normal compared to Cage, who is going wild in this role. The scene where he interrogates the child’s mother about some burned clothes is a good example of how Cage can turn a simple line into a hilariously crazed moment.

Prison Fight – Face/Off (1997)

If there is one movie whose premise can compare to the madness of Cage’s persona, it is Face/Off. This wild action movie stars John Travolta as an FBI agent who switches faces with a terrorist (Cage) for reasons that frankly don’t matter.

While Travolta gets to play the fun villain role for most of the movie, Cage finds ways to inject his signature kookiness as the hero stuck with the face of a madman. During one prison brawl sequence, Cage gets to pull all kinds of crazy faces while hooting and hollering, which eventually leads to his crying.

Alphabet – Vampire’s Kiss (1988)

Nicholas Cage in Vampire's Kiss

Cage will soon get the chance to play the iconic role of Dracula in the upcoming Renfield, but he’s already played a vampire memorably before. Vampire’s Kiss is another movie that seems perfectly tailored to Cage’s type of performance as it allows him to really go wild. He plays a successful executive who begins to think that he is turning into a vampire.

Though it is a horror-comedy, there are some moments where Cage takes a simple line and turns it into a hilariously out-of-control moment. In one scene, he asks a colleague if they know the alphabet and then proceeds to spout the entire alphabet while flailing his arms around wildly.

Transformation – Ghost Rider (2007)

Nicolas Cage in Ghost Rider

After his Superman movie fell apart, Cage finally got the chance to play a superhero in Ghost Rider. Sadly, Cage plays his role surprisingly straight, which contributes to it being an entirely forgettable movie. However, there is one moment in which Cage really unleashes himself and has some fun.

The scene is the first time Johnny Blaze (Cage) transforms into the flame-headed Ghost Rider. As his face burns up, Cage goes bug-eyed and starts screaming in high-pitched agony which then turns into insane laughter.

Bear Costume – The Wicker Man (2006)

One of the great things about The Wicker Man is how off-the-rails it continues to get as it goes along. There are also so many moments that one could pick out with zero context and still find hilarious.

RELATED: The 10 Best Nicolas Cage Movies, According To Letterboxd

One of the best examples of this comes as the island’s citizens are planning their ritual for their annual honey harvest. This includes someone dressing up as a bear and, of course, Cage steals the costume for himself. Seeing Cage waddling around in a bear costume while punching a woman in the face is such a surreal experience.

His Accent – Con Air (1997)

It was quite surprising that Cage became a veritable action movie star following his Oscar-winning role in Leaving Las Vegas. This unexpected run included the absurd and hugely entertaining movie, Con Air.

Cage plays the heroic Cameron Poe, a noble man being released from prison who finds himself on a prison transport plane taken over by the convicts. Cage talks in an over-the-top Southern accent throughout the movie that makes anything he says unintentionally funny.

Scraping At The Door – Ghost Rider: Spirit Of Vengeance (2011)

Nicolas Cage in Ghost Rider Spirit of Vengeance

Despite the disappointment of the first Ghost Rider movie, Cage was able to get a sequel with Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. While it is hard to say this is a better movie, it does at least embrace the madness of the story a lot more which includes Cage’s performance.

In one memorable moment, Johnny Blaze is interrogating a bad guy and begins describing his own personal demons. He keeps using the phrase “scraping at the door” over and over, getting more deranged every time he says it. The terrified man in the scene with him likely required little acting.

Death Scene – Kick-Ass (2010)

Cage joined another comic book movie and played another crime-fighter with his role as Big Daddy in Kick-Ass. The movie is a darkly comedic satire of the superhero genre and Cage gives a hilarious performance that is appropriate for the tone of the movie.

RELATED: Wild At Heart & 9 Other Underrated Nic Cage Movies

However, Big Daddy’s death scene is certainly not meant to be a comedic moment as his young daughter fights desperately to save him as he is set on fire. As the music swells, Big Daddy calls out tactics to his daughter, but Cage’s hitch-pitched and crazed screaming makes it hard to take the moment seriously.

Enjoying The Breeze – Con Air (1997)

con air nicholas cage

While Cage’s accent in Con Air can be pretty distracting, his hair is not much better. But it is made even worse when the movie emphasizes his mullet in a hilarious hero shot early in the movie.

As Cameron Poe gets off the prison bus and steps out into the open air, he takes a moment to enjoy the breeze. Cage’s goofy smile and the wind blowing through that silly haircut robs the moment of any seriousness it was trying to get across.

His Whole Performance – Deadfall (1993)

Eddie in Deadfall 1993

It’s hard to figure out just what is going on in the movie Deadfall. It is either a bad movie that happens to feature Cage’s most wild performance, or it is a movie that was destroyed due to Cage’s performance.

Cage certainly does take over the entire picture and at least breathes some life into the dull crime story. From his bad wig, strange voice, and constant outburst, it is clear that Cage was given free rein and he decided to create a cartoon character. It makes for the rare movie that is so bad it’s actually good.

The Bees – The Wicker Man (2006)

Even though most people have probably never seen The Wicker Man, it’s likely that they are probably familiar with the infamous torture scene at the end of the movie. After Cage’s character is captured by the cult he is put through a ritual before being sacrificed.

To his credit, Cage plays the scene with the kind of terror someone in this situation would have. But it’s hard to keep a straight face as bees are poured all over him and he keeps screaming “Not the bees!” as if the audience is supposed to take all this seriously.

NEXT: 10 Other Actors Who Deserve Their Own Meta-Movie (Like Nicolas Cage), According To Reddit

Jurassic World Dominion

Is Jurassic World Dominion Really The Worst Jurassic Movie?

About The Author

Colin McCormick
(2105 Articles Published)

Colin McCormick is a Senior Writer with Screen Rant and has been a proud member of the team since 2019. In addition to his work as Screen Rant, Colin is also a writer of News, Feature and Review pieces at Game Rant. Colin has had a long passion and obsession with movies going back to the first time he saw The Lion King in theaters. Along with movies, Colin stays up-to-date on the latest must-see TV shows. While he loves to find interesting projects in any kind of genre, he has a special movie of crime stories that are infused with a little dark humor much like the work of his favorite author, Elmore Leonard.

More From Colin McCormick

Author: Deann Hawkins