TV Article Lord of the Rings: Nicolas Cage doesn't regret turning down the role of Aragorn By Devan Coggan Devan Coggan Devan Coggan (rhymes with seven slogan) is a senior writer at Entertainment Weekly. Most of her personality is just John Mulaney quotes and Lord of the Rings references. EW's editorial guidelines Published on October 4, 2015 05:51PM EDT Photo: Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic Some of the biggest movies of the last 15 years almost starred… Nicolas Cage. In an interview with Newsweek, Nicolas Cage sat down to talk about his new horror film Pay the Ghost and his extensive film resume, including a few of the roles he’s turned down. Most notably? Aragorn in Lord of the Rings and Neo in The Matrix. “There were different things going on in my life at the time that precluded me from being able to travel and be away from home for three years,” Cage told Newsweek about Lord of the Rings. Stuart Townsend ended up being cast as Aragorn, but Viggo Mortensen eventually replaced him. Although Cage says he doesn’t have any real regrets in his career, he admits that movies like Lord of the Rings and The Matrix could have benefited his career if he didn’t have to turn them down. “But the thing is about those movies, I can watch them,” he said. “I can enjoy them as an audience member. I don’t really watch my own movies. And so I genuinely do have the joy of watching these — especially with Lord of the Rings.” Read the full interview with Cage at Newsweek.