Nicolas Cage Channeling Humphrey Bogart For Into the Spider-Verse

Oscar-winning actor Nicolas Cage is diving back into the comic book genre with the highly-anticipated animated film, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, in which he will portray the alternate version of the titular character, Spider-Man Noir, as he interacts with other iterations of himself in a multiverse.

Cage sat down with Entertainment Weekly to discuss his method in preparing for the role of Noir, a darker take on the classic character set in the 1930s in which Peter Parker is an apprentice to reporter Ben Urich and is bitten by an illegally imported spider and gets the powers of the insect, using them to wage a war on the criminal underground in his city.

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“I tried to channel those noir films with [Humphrey] Bogart, and have those kinds of sounds that he might make with [James] Cagney, or Edward G. Robinson, that kind of way of talking,” Cage said. “I tried to give the character that. It was a lot of fun. I think it should be quite funny. The movie definitely has a sense of humor, and that’s a good thing because it’s good for the whole family.“

Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, the creative minds behind The LEGO Movie and 21 Jump Street, bring their unique talents to a fresh vision of a different Spider-Man Universe, with a groundbreaking visual style that’s the first of its kind. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse introduces Brooklyn teen Miles Morales, and the limitless possibilities of the Spider-Verse, where more than one can wear the mask. Shameik Moore, star of The Get Down and Dope, voices Miles Morales in the film. He is joined by Liev Schreiber as Kingpin, Mahershala Ali as Miles’ Uncle Aaron, Brian Tyree Henry as Miles’ father Jefferson,  Luna Lauren Velez as Miles’ mother Rio, Lily Tomlin as Aunt May, with Hailee Steinfeld as Spider-Gwen, and Jake Johnson as Peter Parker.

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Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is directed by Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman. The script was written by Phil Lord. The producers are Avi Arad, Amy Pascal, Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, and Christina Steinberg.

The animated feature will swing into theaters on December 14.