Nicolas Cage might be one of the best-known actors around, but the star has opened up to reveal he believes that he only has "three or four" movies left in him before he retires.
Nic Cage is an actor who really divides opinion. Some believe him to be one of the best to ever grace the big screen while others don't understand the appeal at all.
It's hard to argue that some of his performances are outstanding, and the one that stands out to me is his role in Kick-Ass.
Sadly, we may be about to say goodbye to Cage, because as the actor approaches his 60th birthday, he shared his thoughts on the future of his acting career with Vanity Fair.
"I may have three or four more movies left in me," declared Cage, who has appeared in over 100 feature films since his breakthrough role in 1983's Valley Girl.
He explained: "I do feel I've said what I've had to say with cinema. I think I took film performance as far as I could. I want to get much more severe and stringent in my selection process. I want to say goodbye on a high note."
Cage, who won an Oscar for Best Actor in 1996's Leaving Las Vegas, revealed that his father's passing at 75 has influenced his decision.
"What do I want to do with those 15 years, using my father as the model?", he pondered. "It occurred very clearly to me that I want to spend time with my family. I'm starting to cement my plan."
Despite contemplating retirement from movies, Cage expressed openness to exploring other avenues in the entertainment industry. He mentioned considering a television series, a medium he has never ventured into before.
Cage's decision echoes similar sentiments in the film industry, including director Quentin Tarantino's plan to retire after his tenth picture, The Movie Critic.
Cage's late-career resurgence was fueled, in part, by a financial setback in 2009 when he had to pay $14 million in back taxes to the IRS.
Reflecting on that period, Cage told The Hollywood Reporter: "I made the decision to work my way out of it. I only did movies where I thought I could bring something authentic to them. I turned a lot of c**p down."
The actor acknowledged his restlessness between projects and confessed that work keeps him on track.
"I'm a better man when I'm working," he explained. "Work has always been a place where my job is to get up in the morning, to work out, to do 5 to 8 miles on the elliptical, I lift weights, I look at the news, I feed all my animals, and then call my boys.
"[When I'm on set], I'm focused, I'm working with other actors. I have a very clean life when I'm filming, and that's important to me."
It'll be a sad day when Cage hangs up his hat.
