Actor NICOLAS CAGE almost sabotaged his Hollywood career - because he behaved so strangely movie bosses thought he was insane.

The CAPTAIN CORELLI'S MANDOLIN star admits he went through a phase at the start of his acting career when he tried to impress studio execs with his 'star' behaviour - and it was only his amazing performance in LEAVING LAS VEGAS that saved his from obscurity.

He explains, "I totally blame myself. That was about the time I had this strange look on my face and stared at people. It wasn't drugs or drink. "I think I was being an exhibitionist or just trying too hard to be a character. I thought 'Hey, how can I be interesting?' It was a truly dumb idea. "I'd go into bars where there would be studio executives. You could tell from their faces that they thought there was a real nut on the premises. "It took a long, long time for that image to go away." (RGS/WNWCAN/NFA)

Source: WENN