Cage Cooks Up Chaos in Diner Action-Thriller
Academy Award winner Nicolas Cage takes on the role of a con artist caught in a violent overnight siege at a rural Arkansas diner, joined by Shelley Hennig and Justin Long in this high-stakes thriller.
When trouble comes knocking, Nicolas Cage answers the door. The Academy Award winner has built a career on high-octane mayhem, from his '90s blockbuster streak in Con Air and Face/Off to The Rock. Now he's trading explosions for breakfast orders in Best Pancakes in the County, an overnight thriller that traps a con artist inside a small-town eatery turned war zone.
Midnight Menu of Mayhem
The story unfolds across one brutal night. A rural diner becomes ground zero for a three-way collision between corrupt federal agents, a smooth-talking grifter with blood on his trail, and a server hiding deadly secrets. Trust evaporates faster than coffee steam. Survival means outsmarting and outgunning everyone else at the table.
Cage plays the con man whose past catches up over pancakes and syrup. Shelley Hennig from Ouija steps into the server's apron, while Barbarian's Justin Long rounds out the cast in a mystery role. The Arkansas location shoot is already rolling, with Fortitude International shopping the project at February's European Film Market.
Behind the Griddle
Ken Sanzel writes and directs this pressure-cooker thriller. His resume spans network crime shows like Numb3rs and Blue Bloods, plus action features including Kill Chain, which previously paired him with Cage. The producing team calls Sanzel a "visionary" director ready to deliver "action-packed, fast-paced adventure with wit and intensity."
Raja Collins, Eduard Osipov of Beno Films, Eric Brenner, and Caliwood Pictures' Niko Fomenko and R. Wesley Sierk III produce. Executive producers include Caliwood's John D. Straley, Audra Gricius, Jina Panebianco, Lance Kawas, Ahmed S. Boomrod, Eugene Pruss, and Fortitude's Nadine de Barros.
"We're thrilled to reunite with the iconic Cage, guided by the visionary Ken Sanzel," the team said. "This action-packed, fast-paced adventure with wit and intensity is set to captivate audiences worldwide." The collaboration marks Cage's continued climb back to mainstream relevance after years of direct-to-video detours.