Nicolas Cage Blames Former Business Manager For ‘Financial Ruin’

Tags:

Nicolas Cage,Courts,Celebrities

enlarge

1/4

Getty Images
Nicolas Cage at his ‘Bad Lieutenant - Port of Call New Orleans’ screening at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 15, 2009
WireImage
John Travolta makes a return to public life alongside Nicolas Cage at Disney’s D23 Expo in Anaheim, Calif., on September 11, 2009
Getty Images
Nicolas Cage and wife Alice Kim arrive for the DIFF Salutes Charles Roven during day three of The 5th Annual Dubai International Film Festival
Getty Premium
Nicolas Cage visits the ‘Late Show with David Letterman’ at the Ed Sullivan Theater on March 16, 2009 in New York City

hottest galleries

more galleries

FIRST PUBLISHED: October 16, 2009 6:03 PM EDT
LAST UPDATED: October 16, 2009 8:13 PM EDT

LOS ANGELES, Calif. --

Nicolas Cage has blamed an alleged “incompetent business manager” for a string of financial troubles, according to court papers obtained by Access Hollywood.

In the papers, filed on Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday, the box office star alleged that his former business manager, Samuel J. Levin, has been responsible for “sending Cage down a path toward financial ruin.”

Cage, who has put a number of properties on the market in recent months, alleged that he is “now forced to sell major assets and investments at a significant loss and is faced with huge tax liabilities because of Levin’s incompetence, misrepresentations and recklessness.”

The actor claimed that Levin paid himself “millions of dollars” while putting Cage’s money into “risky” and “highly speculative” investments, also allegedly failing to “timely pay taxes.”

As previously reported by AccessHollywood.com, the IRS recently claimed Cage owes over $6 million in back taxes.

In Friday’s papers, he claims that Levin is responsible for more than $20 million in damages and that he and other parties are “guilty of malice, oppression and/or fraud and [Cage] is entitled to recover an award of exemplary and/or punitive damages.”

Levin could not be reached for comment when contacted by Access Hollywood on Friday.

Keep your Access to everything in Hollywood! Breaking news and personal commentary from Nancy, Billy, Tony, Shaun, Maria & all of our producers! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter now!