John Madden used to say "Self-praise is for losers," so we will praise Nicolas Cage for his latest acting transformation ourselves. During his career, Cage has played many roles in both recognized cinematic masterpieces and... let's be honest, outright trash, but he always gave it his all, getting into his role.
Currently, Cage, 61, is taking part in the filming of the sports drama "Madden," alongside another master of transformation, Christian Bale. However, this time, Bale didn't have to resort to any radical changes in appearance to get into the role. Unlike Cage for sure...
Nicolas Cage, now 61, is going to portray the iconic football coach and commentator John Madden in the upcoming biopic
Image credits: LYNX / Vida Press
Photos from the set showing Cage in a sports suit and makeup were recently leaked
John Madden is a man who is associated with football, probably even more than Bill Belichick, Tom Brady, or Don Shula combined. At the very least, if you have been playing football on a console or mobile device for many years, the game is nearly 100% called Madden NFL. Legendary coach and voice of the game for decades, John Madden left us in 2021, and it was just a matter of time before a biopic about him would appear.
Image credits: LYNX / Vida Press
The upcoming movie is directed by David O. Russell, whose most famous film is also directly related to football (I mean, of course, "Silver Linings Playbook"). Cage will play Madden himself, Bale will play another charismatic legend—Raiders owner Al Davis—and John Mulaney will play Trip Hawkins, the founder of Electronic Arts.
Image credits: Focus on Sport / Getty Images
Apparently, the movie will also tell us the story of the creation of the iconic Madden NFL video game
Judging by this, we will not only see the story of how Madden and Davis won the Super Bowl for the Raiders, but also about the legendary coach's commentating career, as well as how the iconic series of mobile games was created. In the end, this is yet another reason to draw attention to the Raiders franchise in the upcoming NFL season...
Image credits: Alberto Rodriguez / Getty Images
Filming began in April 2025 in Atlanta, and just a couple of weeks later, a scandal erupted when several actors and the crew members allegedly walked off the set because Russell used inappropriate words and tried to insert the same words into the script dialogues. However, filming goes on, and reporters recently showed a photo of Cage in his stage persona.
Image credits: Pig / AI Film
However, the actor's figure in a fat suit doesn't clearly correspond with the way Madden actually looked in his fifties
In addition to his unique voice, John Madden had a very impressive and specific appearance, so even a master of transformations such as Cage had a hard time. Based on Cage's appearance in makeup, and if we draw conclusions from what we know of the plot, the main events of the film unfold in the late eighties, when Madden sold his voice, persona, and name for a new game by the recently founded EA.
Image credits: Face/Off / Touchstone Pictures
In any case, the pictures presented here are just that—photos from the set, not stills from the film—so it's quite easy to assume that everything will look completely different on screen. Be that as it may, it's also worth remembering that in the late eighties, Madden was in his early fifties, and he was almost a decade younger than Cage is now.
Image credits: Longlegs / Traffic.
Cage looks quite authentic in these photos, although more claims may arise about his figure. After all, Madden was a former offensive tackle, so even at his elderly age he was not so much plump as powerful and burly. Cage looks rather... well, doughy. However, on the movie poster, where he and Bale pose with championship rings, the picture looks more like reality.
Image credits: Rotten Tomatoes / Facebook
Cage's on-screen partner will be Christian Bale, who plays Oakland/LA Raiders' owner Al Davis
People in the comments on the photo leaks were actually of two minds over what they saw. Someone agreed that Madden's figure was not depicted in the best way—after all, it's essentially Nicholas Cage in a fat suit and nothing more. Someone even said that another actor would've been better in the lead role—for example, John Goodman.
Others, however, were happy with the lead role pick, and expressed confidence that Cage is going to play this role to perfection. Well, in a while we'll all go to the cinema and see who was right. In any case, when you play a man of John Madden's stature, it's not just the visual appearance that's important, but also the charisma—and Nicolas Cage has plenty of that. Isn't it, our dear readers?
People in the comments had mixed feelings over these photos, but none actually doubted Cage's professionalism and acting skills
