Say what you will about Nicolas Cage, but he's certainly not boring. Over the years, he has consumed a live cockroach on film, taken magic mushrooms with his cat, and bought an octopus for half a million dollars. Say what? Despite being more than a little eccentric, Nicolas Cage has also proven himself to be one of the finest actors of his generation.

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He has been Oscar-nominated twice, winning one for Leaving Las Vegas, and a quick look at any movie list will remind you of the many fantastic films he has starred in over the last four decades, his Oscar-winning venture notwithstanding. Although he's appeared in countless hit films, Nicolas Cage is also known for appearing in a number of cringe-worthy projects, and he doesn't seem to be stopping anytime soon.

Updated on November 18, 2021, by Michael Chaar: Nicolas Cage was once upon a time an A-list star collecting Oscar nominations and wins, however, his career has certainly taken a turn. The actor has appeared in a plethora of questionable films, including The Wicker Man, and Vampire's Kiss, which have prompted the actor to become a meme a time or two. Well, turns out, Nicolas Cage appears in these awful films because he needs the cash. Despite once being worth over $150 million, the actor now has a net worth of $25 million after lavish spending and issues with tax evasion. Cage has had to take on as much work as possible to fix his reputation with the IR, all while requiring an outlet to remain grounded. Nicole has made it clear working makes him a "better man" as it stops him from possibly self-destructing in ways he has in the past.

Nicolas Cage Isn't Making Blockbuster Hits As He Used To

Moonstruck, Con Air, Face/Off, Bringing Out The Dead, and Adaptation are just a few of the incredible films he has starred in over the years, and his performances have been pretty stellar in each of them. There was the occasional low point during the early years of his career, sadly. Airborne thriller Fire Birds crashed and burned at the box office, and the erotic thriller Zandalee fizzled rather than sizzled, but generally speaking, Cage has had a strong track record of films on his portfolio.

In recent years, however, he has mostly been missing from the large screen, as most of his movie releases have gone straight to DVD or online streaming. And sadly, for movie audiences the world over, many of these films have been downright awful.

To his credit, there has been the occasional high point. Kick-Ass, indie-fave Joe, and Spiderman: Into the Spider-Verse are just some of the films that did well in cinemas. And of his VOD releases, Mom and Dad, Mandy, and the recent Lovecraftian horror, Color Out of Space, have all been perfectly acceptable.

Nicolas Cage Has Become A Meme

But by and large, much of his output over the last 15 years has consisted of drivel of the highest order, and his films have largely been relegated to bargain bins in DVD stores and off-the-radar mentions on streaming sites.

Who can forget his turn in The Wicker Man? Those shouts of "not the bees" tickled audiences rather than horrified them in the 2006 horror remake of the seventies classic. Not cool!

And who can forget his turns in Kill Chain, Inconceivable, and Looking Glass? Actually, we are being sarcastic here, as we would be surprised if you have actually seen any of these films, as they are (in this writer's opinion) some of the worst films on the planet. You won't forget Nic Cage's performances in these recent VOD highlights (lowlights) because you won't have witnessed his performances in them! This sparks us all to wonder just why he continues to appear in such awful films?

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Nicolas Cage Needed The Money

Ultimately, it all comes down to money. Thanks to a string of largely successful films, Cage became a multi-millionaire. According to Money Versed, he earned around $150 million between 1996 and 2011. But rather than investing his money or putting savings aside for his tax bills, he blew much of his funds on some wild and crazy purchases.

From haunted houses to dinosaur skulls, he squandered much of his fortune and became broke because of his unbridled spending. His financial situation worsened when the tax man came calling in 2009, with a bill of around $14 million, dating back from 2002. Just what was the man to do? Well, rather than bankrupting himself, in true Nicolas Cage form, he took action.

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To shave those zeros off his tax bill, Cage sold a lot of his assets, including the aforementioned dinosaur skull (worth $276,000) and his castle in Bavaria. He also took on as many movie roles as he could find time for, which is why, in answer to the question posed in this article's title, many of his choices have been poor ones.

He has now joined an eclectic band of actors who have also been relegated to VOD, John Cusack, Bruce Willis, and Adrian Brody to name but three, taking on-demand movie gigs to fend off the IRS. So, if you ever wondered why Cage makes more films a year than Stephen King churns out novels, you now know the answer.

Nicolas Cage Says He's A "Better Man" When Acting

However, the need to make money is not the only reason Cage has starred in so many bad movies. In an interview with Cinemablend, Cage told the interviewer that he is "a better man while working."

He said, "I have structure. I have a place to go. I don’t want to sit around and drink mai tais and Dom Pérignon and have mistakes in my personal life. I want to be on set. I want to be performing." He told The Guardian, "If I don't have a job to do, I can be very self-destructive."

So sure, many of his films have been less than desirable, but you can't fault a man for wanting to work hard and focus his life on something productive. If his acting jobs keep him out of trouble, then fine. It's just a shame that, with the exception of a few, that many of his film choices aren't worthy of his considerable acting talents.

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What's Next For Nicolas Cage?

Aside from his voiceover work for The Croods 2, a quick glance at Cage's IMDd page would suggest that many of his upcoming movies are destined for VOD. Such films as Prisoners Of The Ghostland and 10 Double Zero closely resemble other B-movie productions that Cage has starred in over the last few years, and we're sure Cage will continue starring in other low-budget efforts.

However, let's just hope that Cage does finally manage to pay off the IRS, and let's just hope that Cage does find new scripts that not only satisfy his needs, but that satisfy the needs of his massive fan base. While he is still worth watching in whatever film is churned out online, we would still rather have the Nicolas Cage of Joe, Bad Lieutenant, and Face/Off than the Cage of such low-budget affairs as the aptly named Inconceivable and The Runner.

Heck, we would even be happy to see him in a Wicker Man sequel, just for the novelty value of seeing him running around in a teddy bear costume fending off bees again. Not that this is likely to happen, of course, as you will know if you remember the sting in that particular tale.

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