Has Nicolas Cage Hosted SNL? How to Watch His Appearances
Find out all about Nicolas Cage's history with the show, in honor of the Longlegs star's January 7 birthday.
Born Nicolas Coppola on January 7, 1964, Nicolas Cage is practically Hollywood royalty. His uncle is famed director Francis Ford Coppola, his aunt is Rocky actress Talia Shire, and his cousins include Sofia Coppola and Jason Schwartzman. Cage changed his name in the 1980s as his career began, and hit it big with movies like Peggy Sue Got Married (1986), Moonstruck (1987), and Raising Arizona (1987).
Cage won his first and only Oscar for the 1995 romance Leaving Las Vegas, and went on to become a cult favorite actor known for Con Air (1997), Face/Off (1997), Adaptation. (2002), and the National Treasure franchise.
RELATED: Seth Meyers Shares a Hilarious "Favorite SNL Memory" About Nicolas Cage
He's proved over and over again that when it comes to his own image, he's got a sense of humor. In 2022, he even played himself in The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, an entire action movie about the span of his career. You've also likely seen Saturday Night Live's many impressions of the icon, courtesy of cast members including Jimmy Fallon and Andy Samberg.
You may have wondered if such a prolific star has ever taken his massive talents to SNL. Learn everything you need to know about Nicolas Cage's history with the show below.
Has Nicolas Cage hosted Saturday Night Live?
Yes, though just once.
Cage hosted the season premiere of SNL on September 26, 1992, just a month after the release of Honeymoon in Vegas. He delivered an incredible, episode featuring a couple of still-classic sketches.
He kicked off an amazing Season 18 run of hosts, including Christopher Walken, Michael Keaton, Glenn Close, Bill Murray, Christina Applegate, and Catherine O'Hara (the Schitt's Creek star and Canadian comedy sketch veteran was an SNL cast member who famously quit after one week).
Nicolas Cage's SNL episode featured "Tiny Elvis" and "Baby Names"
Amidst political sketches and a "Weekend Update" appearance by Adam Sandler's Opera Man, the episode featured standout sketches like "Tiny Elvis" and "Baby Names."
"Tiny Elvis" features Cage as a literal tiny Elvis, a pocket-sized king who is simply stunned by how big everything is, in a sketch co-starring Chris Farley.
"Baby Names" stars Cage as a dad-to-be, with cast member Julia Sweeney as his pregnant wife. They realize they haven't spoken about baby names yet, and as she makes suggestions, he finds increasingly ridiculous reasons they couldn't possibly name their kid "William" or "John" or "Peter." Then we find out why.
Cage made a "Weekend Update" cameo with Andy Samberg
Cage has never returned to host, but he did make an iconic cameo in Season 37, Episode 14.
On February 11, 2012, Samberg did an installment of his recurring segment "Get in the Cage," in which he played Nicolas Cage and talked about movies. The real Cage joined Samberg as an identical Nicolas Cage, turning the segment into an incredibly meta bit of comedy that skewered Samberg's impression and allowed Cage to make fun of himself.
How to watch Nicolas Cage's SNL episode
Head to Peacock to watch Nicolas Cage host Season 18, Episode 1 — and don't forget that you can stream sketches from every single season anytime!
