In a surprising revelation during an interview with Newsweek, Nicolas Cage revealed he was offered the role of Aragorn in ‘The Lord of the Rings’ trilogy but turned it down.
Here’s what he told reporter Zach Schonfeld when asked about roles he rejected:
“The Lord of the Rings.’ That trilogy. Aragorn. Or ‘The Matrix’. But the thing is about those movies, I can watch them. I can enjoy them as an audience member. I don’t really watch my own movies. And so I genuinely do have the joy of watching these—especially with ‘Lord of the Rings’. “
However despite the success of ‘The Lord of the Rings’, Cage is adamant about not feeling sorry for turning the role down:
“I don’t really have any regrets. I think regret is a waste of time. I try to always move forward as opposed to dwelling on the past or the movies that might have happened. There certainly were movies that I probably would have benefited from if circumstances in my life allowed me to make them.”
When asked why he turned down ‘Lord of the Rings’, Cage stated that it wasn’t the right time for a grueling shoot in New Zealand.
“There were different things going on in my life at the time that precluded me from being able to travel and be away from home for three years.”
It’s definitely fun to imagine Nicolas Cage as the role of Aragorn, particularly thinking about his performances in films like ‘Face/Off’ and ‘Con Air’. But Viggo Mortensen nailed the role, and his performance contributed to the overall grandeur of the films.
You can watch Cage in ‘Pay the Ghost’ which is available On Demand. Directed by Uli Edel, the movie co-stars ‘The Walking Dead’’s Sarah Wayne Callies.
