Early this past October, Arrowverse architect Marc Guggenheim implied that his team had contacted Nicolas Cage about making a cameo as Clark Kent/Superman in the highly-anticipated "Crisis on Infinite Earths" crossover event -- leading many fans to wonder if he was being serious or not. With "Crisis" slated to kick off this weekend, Guggenheim has now confirmed that he was, in fact, not kidding about optioning the idea to Cage.
While sitting down with IndieWire, Guggenheim was asked if his initial tweet was a joke. He replied, "You know, to be honest with you, because I never want to lie on these things, that was... yeah, I actually did... we did reach out to Nic Cage."
In 1996, Cage signed on to play the Last Son of Krypton in the Tim Burton-directed feature film Superman Lives. However, the project was abruptly canceled in the spring of 1998, just three weeks before filming was scheduled to begin. In 2015, Superman Lives gained new life, of sorts, through the documentary The Death of "Superman Lives": What Happened? -- which chronicled the behind-the-scenes events surrounding the scrapped film.
Fans have been afforded snapshots at what might have been over the years, with photos of Cage's costume test being readily available online. Moreover, while the actor ultimately never got to play Superman in live-action, he did provide the character's voice for the 2018 animated film Teen Titans Go! To the Movies.
The tone of Guggenheim's comments seem to suggests the Arrowvere's bid to enlist Cage did not pan out. However, there's always the possibility audiences could be surprised when "Crisis" hits the airwaves. After all, in the same interview, Guggenheim teased a slew of cameos that have still yet to be officially announced.
As it stands, three different incarnations of Superman are officially slated to appear in the crossover. In addition to Tyler Hoechlin -- who has played the character on Supergirl since 2016 -- "Crisis" will also see Smallville's Tom Welling reprise his role as Clark Kent. Legends of Tomorrow star Brandon Routh will also suit up as the Man of Steel, reprising his role from the 2006 film Superman Returns in order to play the Kingdom Come incarnation of the iconic superhero.
"Crisis on Infinite Earths" begins Sunday, Dec. 8 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Supergirl, then continues in Batwoman on Monday, Dec. 9 at 8 p.m. ET/PT and in The Flash on Tuesday, Dec. 10 at 8 p.m. ET/PT. After the winter hiatus, the crossover will conclude on Tuesday, Jan. 14 in Arrow at 8 p.m. ET/PT and in DC's Legends of Tomorrow at 9 p.m. ET/PT.