Nic Cage Horror Movie Director Facing Horrific Abuse Accusations
The director of a recent Nic Cage horror film is facing some very disturbing abuse allegations. Two women have come out with stories of abuse
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Nic Cage isn’t known as a horror actor per se, but he’s taken that turn in some movies over the years that have proven to be pretty well-received for the actor. Unfortunately, one of them that garnered quite a bit of acclaim in the genre has the director of the film facing some very serious allegations. Richard Stanley has had domestic assault charges filed against him recently by an ex-girlfriend and apparently, this isn’t the first time the director has been down this path. If true, it paints a disturbing picture for Stanley.
The recent news about Richard Stanley comes long after he and Nic Cage worked on Color Out of Space. The rumors, which is what they are at this point, are in the form of a blog post from his ex-wife, writer Scarlet Aramis. In a recent detailed description of their relationship, she explained some accusations she had made against Stanley while they were together and a set of incidents that she actually filed charges for. She wrote this in her blog:
“I filed charges for Domestic Violence, Assault & Battery against Richard Stanley, my then long term life & creative partner in October, 2014, after he beat the shit out of me in our car parked behind the Banque Postale in Lavelanet, France when we were returning from a film festival in London. It was not the first time he had beaten me. In fact, he beaten the shit out of me numerous times, but I finally pressed charges against him that time…Now there are another set of charges against him for Domestic Violence, Assault & Battery from another woman who was his partner. Another woman who believed him and loved him, and whom he beat the shit out more than once, and who was afraid she was going to die by his hand. I remember that feeling all too well.”
The second set of charges Aramis is referring to doesn’t have any more details around them except that I suspect they are being investigated if true. On the heels of the writer posting this and these allegations coming out, the production company, SpectreVision, that produced the Nic Cage horror film chose to sever ties with Stanley going forward. It doesn’t appear that he’ll be working with them again regardless of the outcome or validity of these most recent charges.
Color Out of Space came out back in September of 2019 though at the time didn’t enjoy much in the way of box office success. But critics really enjoyed the film, and it’s sitting at 86% on Rotten Tomatoes. The movie has a Lovecraftian feel to it with Nic Cage playing Nathan Gardner, a farmer who moves his family to his parent’s property looking for a change in life and scenery. But no sooner do they get there than a meteor basically lands right in their backyard. What ensues is a series of odd and ultimately scary events that lead to the demise of all involved. It’s a creepy and tension-filled film with Cage playing the part of a slow burn psycho really well.
This wasn’t the only horror-vibe movie Nic Cage has leaned into lately either. He recently released Willy’s Wonderland, a much different film though no less disturbing about a janitor (Cage) trapped in an animatronic hellscape overnight. He needs to fight his way out of the Chuck E. Cheese-like setting before becoming a ritualistic sacrifice to the funhouse demons. It’s a silly/ scary film that Cage really leans into.
As for his movie relationship with Robert Stanley, it’s hard to imagine Nic Cage or anyone really working with the director for the time being while the accusations are investigated and handled. Again, details around the most recent ones are sparse but if a case were to further along I’m sure we’d hear more about this situation.
