ACTOR BLEW $150M FORTUNE ON CARS, ZOO ANIMALS AND ISLANDS, BECOME BROKE

 

How Nicolas Cage blew $150m fortune on islands, cars and zoo animals to end up broke

Movie star Nicolas Cage became the poster boy for blockbuster films following a string of hits in the 80s and 90s but ploughed through his huge fortune on a string of extravagant purchases

Nicolas Cage has been a local in Hollywood for years on end - but he ended up broke after blowing his millions.

The actor, 56, has been the poster boy for blockbuster films since he launched his acting career back in 1983

From starring in film National Treasure, to bagging a role in Snake Eyes, Nicolas Cage - real name Nicolas Coppola - soon put his name on the map.

An accumulation of his lead roles in successful movies led him to become a multi-millionaire, with the actor at one point becoming a top earner in Hollywood being worth an eye-watering $150 million.

But sadly his fortune didn't last.

The actor, 56, has been the poster boy for blockbuster films since he launched his acting career back in 1983.

The actor managed to squander his millions away on a string of expensive and often eccentric purchases.

In fact, his poor money management forced him to face foreclosure on several of his lavish properties.

He also quickly became in debt, owing the Internal Revenue Service a whopping $6.3 million in property taxes in 2009.

Soon, the global superstar had his back against the wall as he faced dire financial straits.

By the time he hit his 40s, the actor had spent so much money he was essentially broke, prompting him to shift blame onto his accountant.

He blamed his money man6ager on sending him "down a path toward financial ruin".

But before he found himself in turmoil, Nicolas enjoyed a lavish few years of spending (or overspending) on eccentric items.

Below, we take a look at some of his priciest purchases that contributed to him being broke and penniless before regaining control of his spending in recent years.

A dinosaur skull

 The actor bought a 67 million-year-old Tarbosaurus dinosaur skull for $300,000

A dinosaur skull was something that was top of his list of things to bag - and whatever Nicolas wanted, Nicolas got.

The actor snapped up the 67 million-year-old Tarbosaurus dinosaur skull which he reportedly outbid Leonardo DiCaprio for.

Nicolas paid over an eye-watering $300,000 for the ancient item.

However it would later emerge that the skull had actually been stolen, prompting Nicolas to hand it over to Mongolian cops for it to be returned to its original owner.

What's more, this actually wasn't even his first skull purchase.

He previously owned a prehistoric bear skull that he accidentally destroyed while playing pool at home.

Exotic islands and castles

Nicolas bought an 11th-century Bavarian castle in Etzelwang, Germany for $8 million 

At one point, Nicolas owned Nicolas owned 50 rare cars and around 30 motobikes(Tom Hartley

 50 rare cars and around 30 motobikes

Up there with his priciest purchases are the two private islands he bagged in the Bahamas.

Nicolas bought a sprawling 40-acre island south of Nassau, for which he paid a whopping $7 million.

He actually once owned 15 residences simultaneously, which included a $25 million waterfront home in Newport Beach, California.

Nicolas bought a sprawling 40-acre island south of Nassau, for which he paid a whopping $7 million