Nicolas Cage’s appearance in Longlegs terrified both costar Maika Monroe and fans.
“The first time Maika Monroe saw Nicolas Cage as Longlegs, was in the following scene,” a promo released via social media on Monday, July 8, read. The video then cut to a clip of Cage, 60, with his face hidden behind a movie marker.
“What you’re about to hear is Maika’s actual heartbeat,” the video continued, while a racing heart beat began playing in the background of the clip and Monroe, 31, was seen taking a deep breath in a dimmed hallway.
As someone on set yelled “action,” Monroe opened the door and slowly stepped through the threshold. She began to shut the door behind her, stepping backward as it closed.
Monroe walked forward and took a seat across from Cage, whose face was blocked behind a black box.
“Maika’s resting heart rate is 76 BPM,” the text said. “In this scene, it hit 170 BPM.”
The clip also displayed a quote from Monroe, which read, “When I walked in and saw Nicolas Cage for the first time as Longlegs, that was a visceral experience I’ll never forget.”
A clip of Cage as Longlegs emerged on the screen for a nanosecond, with the camera then panning to Monroe, who leapt up from her chair in fear.
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Following the teaser’s release, fans took to social media to weigh in on the video — and Cage’s character.
“CHILLS,” one user wrote, while another added, “My heart also hits 170 bpm when seeing Nicolas Cage.”
Directed by Oz Perkins, Longlegs centers around FBI agent (Monroe) who pursues an infamous serial killer, played by Cage. According to Monroe, Perkins wanted to keep her and Cage “completely separate” ahead of filming as to not spoil his look.
“No one showed me any photos of him,” Monroe said during an interview with IndieWire published on Tuesday, July 9. “Oz wanted it to be a complete surprise for that scene when we interact for the first time. Just imagine that. It was completely shocking and overwhelming. The first time I met him, the cameras were rolling, and they called action. I opened the door, and there he was.”
Monroe called the moment they were face-to-face “absolutely insane.” She added, “As you know, he completely transformed. There’s no trace of Nic in there, his voice, his mannerisms. He was very much Method on this. So it was in character, and it’s a very disturbing character, to say the least.”
Longlegs hits theaters on Friday, July 12.
