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Nicolas Cage On The Flash: "I Wasn't Upset, I Was Just Perplexed"

When it comes to his cameo in The Flash, Nicolas Cage hasn't been quiet about how he feels about it, but he has clarified that "I wasn't upset; I was just perplexed."

Last summer, The Flash came out and was certainly a thing that happened. The film was the second of four DC Studios films released in 2023 that pretty definitively slammed the door on the previous era of the DC Universe. Things were still up in the air when The Flash came out, but when it spectacularly bombed both at the box office and critically, it became apparent that the DC Universe wasn't going out on a high note. One of the most egregious aspects of The Flash was its use of cameos and reliance on nostalgia. You can see that in the crisis scene and bringing in Nicolas Cage as Superman was probably the one where you knew the film had gone off the rails because only people who were terminally online understood that reference, and you can't get a budget north of $300 million back on the terminally online. Cage has spoken about the cameo and how he was unhappy with how the whole thing played out, but Deadline asked him about it again and if his version of Superman would ever return.

"Oh, no, I don't think that's coming back in any way," Cage explained about his version of the character coming back. However, Cage went on to say that he wasn't ever angry about Superman Lives being canceled but more confused because the whole thing seemed like a no-brainer at the time. "And listen, I wasn't angry about the situation. I really wasn't. I was just confused. I was mystified by what happened [in the first place] because [Tim Burton], one of the greatest directors in the world, had wanted to make the movie and already had kind of defined the way to make the best comic book based storyline with the Batman franchise with Michael Keaton. So I couldn't understand why that studio, who had such success with that fantastic, brilliant director, would pull the plug. But that was a long time ago."

Cage has been in the business for a long time, though, and knows that you need to let bygone be bygones at the moment. People have been talking about the cameo in The Flash and how fake he looked to the point that people had to come out and say that he was on set because if you had asked someone if that was AI, they probably would have thought that it was. However, much like Superman Lives, Cage wasn't angry or upset but more confused. "And then subsequently, what happened with The Flash… I wasn't upset; I was just perplexed. I was just like, "It wasn't what I shot," and I was worried about it. Like, "Did you just tell me that I was witnessing the destruction of the universe so you could take pictures of me and then animate me?" Whether it was through CGI or AI, that wasn't the conversation we had. So I was confused." It was a weird scene within the context of the film, so we don't blame him. It's strange to hear that you went in thinking you were shooting one thing and to see something completely different but still seeing your performance — that must be odd.

However, Cage was happy to see his version of Superman on screen simply to see it realized finally. "But I was still happy to look at it," Cage continued. "I still wanted to see Colleen Atwood's suit, which I maintain is a beautiful suit, and 50% of that [character] was my design. I wanted Superman to have the long, kind of black Samurai hair and a vulnerable feeling — almost no blinking, a stillness in his eyes. And so it was 50/50. It was Tim and myself, we had designed something, and it never came to light, so when I saw it moving, I was very happy that Andy Muschietti wanted me to do it. I did get some satisfaction from seeing the character, but to me, it didn't look [right]. But then, Superman is an alien. Kal-El is from another planet. So, in that way, the CGI kind of looked right because it's alien. It doesn't look real. It doesn't look like it has a heartbeat. So I can look at it that way and think that it worked." While the cameo might be in a film that ultimately doesn't work in a scene that really doesn't work, it's good to hear that Cage got the chance to see this character he put a lot of work into formulating up on the big screen. While it sounds like he never wanted or needed closure, perhaps that's enough.

The Flash: Summary, Cast List, Release Date

Warner Bros. Pictures presents The Flash, directed by Andy Muschietti (the IT films, Mama). Ezra Miller reprises their role as Barry Allen in the DC Super Hero's first-ever standalone feature film. Worlds collide in The Flash when Barry uses his superpowers to travel back in time in order to change the events of the past. But when his attempt to save his family inadvertently alters the future, Barry becomes trapped in a reality in which General Zod has returned, threatening annihilation, and there are no Super Heroes to turn to. That is unless Barry can coax a very different Batman out of retirement and rescue an imprisoned Kryptonian… albeit not the one he's looking for. Ultimately, to save the world that he is in and return to the future that he knows, Barry's only hope is to race for his life. But will making the ultimate sacrifice be enough to reset the universe?

The Flash ensemble also includes rising star Sasha Calle, Michael Shannon (Bullet Train, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice), Ron Livingston (Loudermilk, The Conjuring), Maribel Verdú (Elite, Y tu mamá también), Kiersey Clemons (Zack Snyder's Justice League, Sweetheart), Antje Traue (King of Ravens, Man of Steel) and Michael Keaton (Spider-Man: Homecoming, Batman). It was released on June 16, 2023.

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