Nicolas Cage has claimed that he doesn't need to be part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) because he is Nic Cage... Which is completely fair enough.
The MCU is one of the biggest franchises on the planet that has spanned for well over a decade but has really come to prominence ever since Robert Downey Jr. first got into the Iron Man suit in 2008.
Having four titles in the top 10 highest-grossing movies of all time is incredibly impressive, even if James Cameron does everything in his power to dominate the list.
It's no surprise that Hollywood A-listers line up to be part of the MCU, with names ranging from classic legends such as Anthony Hopkins and Kevin Bridges to Scarlett Johansson and Chris Hemsworth.
It seems like anyone who's anyone is in the MCU (despite Martin Scorcese declaring that they are "not cinema"), but one actor has claimed that he has no need to take part in the franchise, and it's hard to disagree with him.
Cage, 59, is an actor that divides opinions, with some loving and some hating his work, with nobody ever seeing eye to eye as to whether he is incredibly gifted or incredibly lucky.
One thing is for sure, is that he has been part of some of the most iconic movies of all time and if he pops up on your screen you know it's going to be a wild ride.
The actor has already played a Marvel character in Ghost Rider, which has long been forgotten since the emergence of the Avengers.
But he has a lot of love for the stories, as he told Variety: "I’ve gotta be nice about Marvel movies because I named myself after a Stan Lee character named Luke Cage. What am I going to do, put Marvel movies down? Stan Lee is my surrealistic father. He named me."
When he was questioned about whether he wanted to be part of the MCU, the Con Air actor simply replied: "I don’t need to be in the MCU, I’m Nic Cage."
It's really hard to argue against that, as the legendary actor has already made himself a household name due to his previous work such as Kick-Ass and The Wicker Man.
The 59-year-old was set to play Superman in Tim Burton's Superman Lives in the 90s but the project never came to light.
According to the actor, Warner Brothers got cold feet following the poor display of Mars Attacks at the box office and they were apprehensive to do another "really weird" movie.
Cage did let on what the character would have been like as he said: "It was more of a 1980s Superman with like, the samurai black long hair. I thought it was gonna be a really different, sort of emo Superman, but we never got there."
The Hollywood Icon has recently starred opposite Pedro Pascal in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, a movie where he plays himself as an actor down on his luck who gets embroiled in a hilarious journey with a supposed cartel boss who is obsessed with him.
It would be amazing to see Nic Cage in the MCU, but as he said, he simply doesn't need to.
