Simon West’s ‘Fortitude’ Enlists Nicolas Cage For The Most Unexpected WWII Spy Story Yet

Nicolas Cage is about to go to war. Well, actually, he’s about to get into the espionage business of World War II, as the star has been cast in Fortitude, the upcoming action-adventure from director Simon West. Production on the film has officially commenced in London, and we are ready for another meme-worthy closeup.

The action will focus on a real but little-known element of the war, the wide-ranging efforts of British Intelligence to deceive the Nazis in order to trick them into the wrong conclusions. British officers Dudley Clarke and Thomas Argyll “Tar” Robertson took part in an elaborate campaign that included an entire set of false armies, phony tanks and planes, and double agents. The moves, which confused Nazi high command, included planting false information and sending British special forces into occupied Europe to impersonate Germans. In addition to Clarke and Robertson, the film also stars the real-life Yugoslavian double agent and playboy Dusko Popov, whose larger-than-life exploits are rumored to be the inspiration for Ian Fleming’s, James Bond. To ensure the film is as historically accurate as possible, the filmmakers are working with historian Joshua Levine to develop the script.

Fortitude is also a return for Cage to the WWII tale after many years. In 2002 the actor played the leading role in Pacific War action movie Windtalkers. In the film, Cage portrayed a U.S. soldier who was part of a team of Navajo code talkers sent into the South Pacific on a dangerous mission. He later led a war flick in USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage in 2016. This time around, instead of running headlong into battle, Cage will be venturing into a more shadowy element of the war, and in a way, it’s a surprising turn for Nicolas Cage that actually seems very, well, Nicolas Cage-y.

In a press release, producers teased an “action-driven ensemble piece that finds exciting new storytelling in the stranger-than-fiction tactics and bold heroism of British Intelligence.” This is to say, the result could be a surprising war film that manages to successfully mix West’s action-movie chops with a cast that includes Cage at the top of the bill.