Nicolas Cage Ditches Clown Name for Good

Many are unaware that  is part of one of Hollywood's royal families.

The actor has made the effort to pave his own path - and now he has made it legal.

The 62-year-old was born Nicolas Kim Coppola from the iconic Italian-American Coppola family, but said he would rather be the patriarch of his own family than the 'clown cousin' of famous filmmakers and performing artists. 

The Oscar winner, who recently opened up about the , revealed that he even went so far as to legally change his name last year.

Cage told Variety in an interview published Wednesday: 'I am Nick Cage. I changed my name legally last year.

'I'm Nick Cage in life, and I'm Nick Cage on camera. 'Tis better to be the patriarch of my own little family than the clown cousin on the margins of someone else's, so I decided I'm going to bring it on and be "Cage."

He also revealed that he took his last name from the Marvel Comics character Luke Cage, as his family also talked about avant-garde artist John Cage. He also said he wanted something 'short and sweet' like James Dean. 

Cage said: 'I thought, well, I'll keep the name "Nicolas" because my father named me Nicolas - with French spelling, which has always frustrated me, because everyone adds an "h." 

'I don't know why he gave me the French spelling! But he did.'