Nicolas Cage On Death Of His ‘Wild At Heart’ Director David Lynch: “I Never Had More Fun On A Film Set”

EXCLUSIVE: The star of David Lynch‘s Palme d’Or winning 1990 road trip bender, Wild at Heart, Nicolas Cage tells us that the late filmmaker who died today, “was a singular genius in cinema, one of the greatest artists of this or any time.”

“He was brave, brilliant, and a maverick with a joyful sense of humor,” Cage continues, “I never had more fun on a film set than working with David Lynch. He will always be solid gold.”

In the movie, which was shot in New Orleans and Louisiana, Cage plays an Elvis-like character, Sailor, an ex-con, recently from prison who reunites with the love of his life, Lula, played by Laura Dern, who broke out in Lynch’s Blue Velvet. The problem in their lives remains Lula’s notorious mother (played by Dern’s real life mom Diane Ladd) who sends hitman and detectives on Sailor and Lula’s road strip to get them back. The pic also starred Willem Dafoe, Crispin Glover, Harry Dean Stanton, Blue Velvet actress and former Lynch partner Isabella Rossellini, and Twin Peaks thespians Sherilyn Fenn and Gracie Zabriskie.

Wild at Heart also launched rockabilly singer Chris Isaak out of cannon with the hit single “Wicked Game,” of which Lynch also directed the music video. “Wicked Game’ reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 in March 1991.

The movie was released at a zeitgeist time for Lynch, following its Palme D’Or win and during the summer immediately following the first season spring airing of Twin Peaks on ABC. Wild at Heart grossed $14.5M at the domestic box office.

Wild at Heart received one Oscar nomination for Diane Ladd (Dern’s mother) in Supporting Actress.