Nicolas Cage's Superman comic sold for a record $15 million to a mysterious buyer at an auction recently.
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Nicolas Cage’s once-stolen super-rare Action Comics No.1, the OG comic that introduced the flying superhero to the world, was sold for a record $15 million at a private auction, as reported by CBS News.
The negotiation was conducted at a private auction by Metropolis Collectibles/Comic Connect, who said the buyer wishes to remain anonymous. According to Nicolas Cage, he possessed the rare issue for four years until it was stolen from his house. He later repossessed the issue, and the infamy only increased the rare comics’ already high valuation.
Stolen Superman Comic Exchanged Hands and Value
Rolling Stone reported that the 1938 issue was bought for 10 cents, which amounts to $2.25 today. Nicolas Cage bought the comic for $150,000 in 1996, where he held on to it for four years till it was stolen.
CBS News reported that the copy was found in a storage locker in the San Fernando Valley and was verified by a comic collector as being indeed the same one Cage owned. The actor, this time, kept the iconic paper for only 6 months and sold it for a record $2.2 million.
Metropolis Collectibles/Comic Connect CEO Stephen Fishler said that the theft of the issue increased the notoriety surrounding the comic, adding more value to auctioners. Vincent Zurzolo, president of the company, said:
This is among the Holy Grail of comic books. Without Superman and his popularity, there would be no Batman or other superhero comic book legends. Its importance in the comic book community shows with his deal, as it obliterates the previous record.
The company owns Action Comics No. 1, and it is believed that only 100 of these exist in the world. Superman was and is indeed pivotal for laying the groundwork for the entire superhero genre. Marvel themselves tried to replicate the energy that Superman brought to audiences, whether on paper or on screen.
Nicolas Cage himself is an avid fan of the Krypton-born hero and was primed to play the character in a Tim Burton-directed movie.
Nicolas Cage’s Almost Superman: Tim Burton’s Cancelled Film Explained
Nicolas Cage was attached to star as Superman in Tim Burton’s unmade late‑’90s film Superman Lives, a famously cancelled project that went through massive development hell before Warner Bros. pulled the plug.
Spending millions in pre-production, the movie was ready for success, given Tim Burton’s history with Warner Bros. on the Batman films, with a tentative 1998 release. Nicolas Cage’s role as Clark Kent/Superman would’ve seen a young Kal-El growing up with the inherent fear of being an alien.
The story was based on the famous DC Comics crossover event, The Death of Superman, and with Tim Burton’s direction, we would’ve gotten a more gothic and serious tone for the superhero.
ScreenRant reports that right before the project was plugged, around $30 million was sent down the drain after multiple rewrites, elaborate FX concepts, and extensive pre‑production work.
In a terrible move by Andy Muschietti, Nicolas Cage got a cameo as Superman in The Flash, but according to the actor, what was filmed wasn’t what was on-screen (via Yahoo):
When I went to the picture, it was me fighting a giant spider. I did not do that. That was not what I did. I don’t think it was created by an AI companion. I know Tim is upset about AI, as I am. It was CGI, OK, so that they could de-age me, and I’m fighting a spider. I didn’t do any of that, so I don’t know what happened there.
We are as perplexed as you are, Cage. Tim Burton’s Superman Lives film could’ve gone down in history as one of the most haunting portrayals of the character, adding more perceptions to the superhero.
At least Nicolas Cage got some money out of the comic and his cameo, so maybe all’s well sorta ended well?
What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments.
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