What happens when you’re invited inside the halls of Nicolas Cage’s Las Vegas home, and have the opportunity to photograph the iconic, maverick, no-holds-barred actor sat inside his very own giant Peruvian geodesic dome, glittering with purple crystal formations? Well, you put it front and centre on the cover, of course. For our Greatest Actors Issue – celebrating cinema’s 50 most powerful performers, as voted for by you – Empire was granted an audience with Cage, spending a wild day with the legend himself to discuss his greatest performances, his ‘nouveau shamanic’ acting style, his ability to skirt between surrealism and naturalism, and the places he’s still yet to go in his career. Plus, we meet his menagerie of animals – fish, turtles, terrapins, a pig, a possum, a crow, a Maine Coone cat named Merlin, and his Chow Chow dog, Bruce Lee.
Leading the Greatest Actors Issue, this month’s Empire cover finds Cage sat inside his own cavernous sparkling geode, shot by Sam McGuire.
And this month’s subscriber cover – also shot by McGuire – sees Cage basking in the Las Vegas sunshine, with Bruce Lee the Chow Chow by his side.
And that’s only the beginning – the issue is packed with celebrations of cinema’s greatest on-screen talent, boasting incredible new interviews with the stars themselves (including an extensive acting masterclass from Tilda Swinton herself), tributes from directors, and more. Inside, you’ll find Tim Burton waxing lyrical on his Joker, Jack Nicholson; Ridley Scott singing the praises of Joaquin Phoenix as they collaborate again on Napoleon; Baz Luhrmann on the talents of Nicole Kidman; Gina Prince-Bythewood on the magic and magnetism of Viola Davis; James Mangold, who studied Buster Keaton movies to prepare for Indiana Jones 5, on the magic of Buster; and Ang Lee paying tribute to the late, legendary Heath Ledger. As for the full reader-voted list of the 50 Greatest Actors? Return to empireonline.com on Monday 19th December for the complete reveal.
Inside this issue, we also take an exclusive look at the bonkers Cocaine Bear, prepare to face the apocalypse with The Last Of Us, blast off into the cosmos with Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 3, and much, much more. Stay tuned for more on what’s inside, and prepare to pick up the issue when it hits newsstands on Thursday 22 December. Pre-order a copy online here.