Nicolas Cage And His Search For The Holy Grail
At this point, Nicolas Cage is as famous for his many off-screen exploits as he is for his acting career, which spans more than 100 credited appearances per IMDb. The National Treasure actor once famously purchased a Tyrannosaurus skull from a Beverly Hills gallery for $276,000, only to later learn that the skull was stolen, prompting a number of comparisons to his treasure-hunting character.
According to a recent Vanity Fair profile on the Spider-Man Noir performer, Cage has developed even more similarities to his on-screen persona from the National Treasure films, as he has spent a great deal of his free time hunting for the holy grail.
Nicolas Cage is searching for the Holy Grail, and no, it’s not for a movie, he’s actually trying to find the legendary artifact.
This is not to say that Nicolas Cage has been on the hunt for a symbolic holy grail, such as the acting role of a lifetime or a one-in-a-million art installation for his gallery. The esteemed character actor confirmed that he literally sought the legendary Arthurian treasure. Cage even went so far as to purchase property in the New England state of Rhode Island as a means to follow a distant thread to the treasure, only to conclude that the real holy grail is the beauty we find in nature along the way.
Apparently, this lust for treasure was partially inspired by Cage’s time filming the National Treasure films, but the actor was driven even further into the search for treasure by his resolution to give up drinking and focus on philosophy.
Nicolas Cage’s quest for meaning in the space around him prompted him to travel the world in search of anything which brought him closer to locating the goblet which supposedly held the blood of Christ during the crucifixion. Cage even located a Glastonbury spring, which produces water that tastes like blood, though the spring ultimately turned out to be a dead-end, as the taste comes from a higher-than-usual iron count.
Apparently, this lust for treasure was partially inspired by Cage’s time filming the National Treasure films, but the actor was driven even further into the search for treasure by his resolution to give up drinking and focus on philosophy.
This treasure hunt was also partially inspired by Nicolas Cage’s famed purchase of the stolen T-Rex skull, which concluded with Cage forfeiting the remains to its proper home in Mongolia without ever seeing a return on his investment. Cage’s newfound obsession with philosophy also coincided with a deep connection to transcendental meditation, which the actor performed as many as three times per day for a number of years, allowing him to tap into an open-minded space that made it difficult to connect with his peers.
Nicolas Cage’s quest for meaning in the space around him prompted him to travel the world in search of anything which brought him closer to locating the goblet…
For that reason, Nicolas Cage claims he has largely given up on philosophy and meditation, at least on the level that he once was. Cage likened his journey to being like a kite without an anchor, claiming that his quest for treasure placed barriers between himself and others, preventing him from experiencing life in the raw, unfiltered way he had been chasing. These days, Cage says that he’s focused on his work, which is evidenced by his massive catalog of film, television, and even video game performance credits.
Nicolas Cage currently has four upcoming projects in various stages of active production, according to IMDb, with many more sure to follow once the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes conclude, allowing film production to continue. For now, if you’d like to see Cage hunting for treasure, you can catch him in both of the National Treasure films, which apparently bear greater resemblance to real life than previously thought.
