Nicolas Cage remains one of the biggest Hollywood stars and there was a time when audiences would flock to theaters to watch any film attached to his name. Unfortunately, the Pig actor hit a dry spell after starring in several box office flops at the start of the 2010s, including 2011’s Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. The resulting backlash forced Sony to drop its plans for a third Ghost Rider film, as the rights to the character went back to Marvel Studios.
A little over a decade since he last donned the flaming skull and rode the Hellcycle, Cage just revealed that he’s not against reprising his former role in an MCU appearance.
In a recent AMA on Reddit as part of the ongoing promotional tour of his latest film, The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, Cage had an interesting answer when asked what it would take for him to star as Ghost Rider in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Cage didn’t exactly say that he will come back as Ghost Rider, but he didn’t rule out the possibility either. Instead, all Cage had to say was that he “would really need to see what they had in mind.”
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Technically, Ghost Rider already exists in the MCU. The Robbie Reyes incarnation of Ghost Rider was a fan favorite on Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D and was initially set to get a spin-off series on Hulu. If we assume that Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D is canon, the door is open to Cage returning as Johnny Blaze, as the series hinted that the motorcycle stunt performer was in the show’s universe.
Cage could come back as an older Johnny Blaze who will act as a “mentor” to a newer and much younger Ghost Rider. Cage’s return as Blaze would also fit with Marvel Studios’ recent plans of building the supernatural side of the MCU with the arrival of Moon Knight and Blade, among others.
Unfortunately, Cage’s Ghost Rider will have to wait for a while longer to come back. After two back-to-back romps in the multiverse on the big screen with last year’s Spider-Man: No Way Home and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness on May 6, Marvel Studios will want to take it easy with all the cameos. Then again, we could be wrong. An earlier rumor suggested that the MCU had already found its Ghost Rider in Norman Reedus. Even before this, hawk-eyed fans spotted Marvel Studios filing a mystery LLC referencing Ghost Rider, which many believed hinted at an upcoming Ghost Rider show on Disney+.
Given Cage’s recent string of box office and critical successes, audiences would love to see him appear on the big screen as Ghost Rider in a future MCU film. More importantly, we’re hoping that the success of Moon Knight will make Marvel Studios double down on more mature MCU shows and movies, paving the way for a Ghost Rider feature film or a show that may or may not star Cage.
Speaking of Cage, the award-winning actor recently revealed that he wants to play Egghead in a Batman film. Meanwhile, Cage will debut in his first two Western films later this year in The Old Way and Butcher’s Crossing. Finally, Cage is set to star as Dracula in Renfield next year alongside Nicholas Hoult.
