Oscar-winning actor Nicolas Cage went on a drunken tear in New Orleans’ French Quarter Friday night that ended with his arrest on several charges, including domestic abuse battery, according to a police spokesman.
It began at 11:30 p.m. when Cage, who is in the city to work on a movie, began arguing with his wife on the 600 block of Dumaine Street, New Orleans Police Officer Garry Flot said.
“He and his wife were standing in front of a residence that he insisted was the property the couple was renting,” Flot said. “She disagreed, and Cage grabbed her by the upper arm and pulled her to what he believed was the correct address.”
Cage then “began striking vehicles and later attempted to get into a taxi.”
Police, who had been called by on-lookers, arrived to find Cage heavily intoxicated,” he said. They ordered the actor out of the cab, “which prompted Cage to start yelling,” Flot said.
“The officers subsequently took Cage to Central Lock-Up,” the police spokesman said.
In the mugshot released by the Orleans Parish Sheriff, an unshaven Cage stood with eyes closed.
Cage was charged with domestic abuse battery, disturbing the peace and public drunkenness, Flot said.
An Orleans Parish magistrate set his bond at $11,000 with a court date for May 31, according to the booking information online. It also said “stay away order waived,” indicating Cage is not prohibited from being with his wife.
“There were no visible signs of injury on his wife’s arm,” Flot said.
Cage was released from jail Saturday afternoon, according to the jail’s information line.
Duane Chapman — known as “Dog the Bounty Hunter” from the A&E reality show chronicling his life — bailed Cage out of jail, he said in a statement. While he called himself “a truly dedicated fan of Mr. Cage,” Chapman insisted he was simply doing his job “as a bail bondsman and not in connection with our show.”
“There are two sides of my job: I release my clients after they have been arrested, and pick them up if they don’t show up in court,” Chapman said. “I do not believe the latter will be the case for Mr. Cage.”
Calls and e-mails from CNN to the actor’s lawyer and representative have not been returned.
Cage, 47, and his third wife, Alice Kim, have a 5-year-old son. His previous two marriages, to Patricia Arquette and Lisa Marie Presley, ended in divorce.
The Academy Award winner has acted in dozens of films, but is best known for his roles in “Raising Arizona” and “Leaving Las Vegas,” for which he nabbed an Oscar.
Although one of Hollywood’s highest-paid movie stars, Cage’s financial troubles, including tax liens and foreclosures on houses, have been highly publicized in the past two years.
He sued his accountant in 2009, charging that he “lined his pockets with several million dollars in business management fees while sending Cage down a path toward financial ruin.”
The accountant, Samuel Levin, responding to the lawsuit by saying he warned Cage that he could face bankruptcy unless he scaled back his lavish lifestyle.
Source: CNN