John Madden to be portrayed by surprising Hollywood star in new film

Feb 3, 2011; Dallas, TX, USA; NFL former head coach John Madden during the Madden most valuable protectors award press conference at the Sheraton in downtown Dallas. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

One veteran actor is going from stealing the Declaration of Independence to playing John Madden.

Borys Kit of The Hollywood Reporter reported on Thursday that Nicolas Cage is set to portray the late football icon in the new film “Madden.” The film, which will be directed by David O. Russell and produced by Amazon MGM Studios, is set to be a unique drama. It will be part-biopic and part-origin story of the popular “Madden” video game.

You can read Kit’s full report on the upcoming film here.

Madden, the former Super Bowl-winning head coach for the then-Oakland Raiders who later became a legendary NFL commentator, died in late Dec. 2021 at the age of 85. Among his many claims to fame was serving as the namesake of the “Madden NFL” video game series from its inception in 1988 (the game was originally known as “John Madden Football”).

As for Cage, who has been acting for over four decades now, he remains one of the most well-known stars in Hollywood, even at 60 years old. Cage has maintained a cult following over the years and continues to turn in quality performances (recently being nominated for a 2024 Golden Globe for Best Actor on the strength of his performance in the film “Dream Scenario”).

It may be difficult to envision Castor Troy working with the telestrator or belting out the catchphrase, “Boom! Tough Actin’ Tinactin!” But the casting of Cage is actually a pretty solid outcome considering who was initially in talks to portray Madden in the film.