"I'm very happy to be working on a movie that is popular, that is popular with the American people, that is good for the family," he said during an interview at Prairie Edge, a Native American-themed art store in downtownRapid City. In the film, which is scheduled for release this year, he plays Patric Gates, the father of Nicholas Cage's character, Benjamin Franklin Gates. The 2004 film was a popular popcorn hit that packed theaters and generated millions in receipts.
"We're hoping this is as good," Voight said. It's the latest project for a movie star who won an Oscar for best actor for 1978's "Coming Home" and was nominated three other times for Academy Awards. Voight, 68, said he's glad he's still in demand.
He's made more than 70 movies and said it's difficult to name a favorite role or film. But he is proud of 1969's "Midnight Cowboy," in which he played Joe Buck, a cowboy hustler on the streets of New York City who is befriended by Dustin Hoffman, who played "Ratso" Rizzo. It's the only X-rated movie to ever be named Best Picture.
"It's a masterpiece," Voight said. "And it's the movie that earned me special attention." Indeed it did.
After it was released Voight, who had toiled on TV and in smaller film roles for years, became an A-list star and was the lead actor in dozens of movies. In recent years he's played more supporting roles and is also known as the father of Angelina Jolie, herself an Oscar winner. Voight said he has several movies that will soon come out.
He is especially proud of "September Dawn," in which he will play a fundamentalist Mormon leader involved with the infamous Mountain Meadows Massacre of Sept. 11, 1857. The movie, which depicts how Mormons killed 137 settlers traveling across Utah, has parallels of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, with it showing how religious extremists can kill without asking questions, he said.
But Voight was in a relaxed and friendly mood Thursday, as he posed for photos with Prairie Edge staffers and others who approached him. He said he met with Native Americans Wednesday and is enjoying his first visit to South Dakota. "I've been shopping, meeting folks," he said.
"So I've been having fun." Cage has also been spotted in Rapid City as residents get excited by seeing Hollywood stars walking around the city. Voight said he enjoys meeting people and isn't worried about being bothered.
He was looking forward to his first look at Mount Rushmore. "I like all those guys," he said of the presidents on the mountain. In the movie, Cage is seeking clues on Abraham Lincoln's assassination and they lead him to Rushmore.
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