Nicolas Cage Explains Why He Likes To Be Called 'Thespian' Instead Of 'Actor'

Nicolas Cage revealed that he likes to be called a "thespian" instead of an actor because he does not want to be considered a "great liar."

Speaking to Variety’s Award Circuit Podcast on Thursday, the Academy Award winner said, "For me, it always implies, 'Oh, he’s a great actor, therefore he’s a great liar,' So with the risk of sounding like a pretentious a****le, I like the word 'thespian.'"

Cage elaborated how the word gets close to your heart, imagination, dreams, memories, and helps communicate with the audience.

"Because thespian means you’re going into your heart, or you’re going into your imagination, or your memories or your dreams, and you’re bringing something back to communicate with the audience," he explained.

The 57-year-old thespian also opened up about his unique acting style and explained why he is not "over the top" when it comes to acting. "Well, when they say that [over the top] to me, I say, ‘You tell me where the top is and I’ll tell you whether or not I’m over it.'"

He explained how "Naturalism" is a style, which was told to him by his aunt, actress Talia Shire. "And I was also a big believer in art synchronicity, and that what you could do with one art form you could do and another meaning," he added.

"You know, in painting, for example, you can get abstract, you can get photorealistic, you can get impressionistic, why not try that with film performance?" the "National Treasure" star continued.

Cage spoke about a Russian theatre practitioner called Konstantin Stanislavski and revealed that he once said the "worst thing an actor can do is imitate" and admitting that he is a "bit of a rebel," he wanted to break that rule.

"So I tried with "Wild at Heart," a Warhol-like approach to the Sailor Ripley character," he explained. "In movies, like "Prisoners of the Ghost Land" or even "Face/Off" or "Vampire’s Kiss," I was experimenting with what I would like to call Western Kabuki or more Baroque or operatic style of film performance."

On the work front, Cage will be next seen in movies like, "The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent," "The Retirement Plan," "The Old Way," "Butcher's Crossing" and "Renfield."