Report: Nicolas Cage offered lead in Ronald Reagan film

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 28 (UPI) -- Nicolas Cage is reportedly being eyed for a new film about Ronald Reagan.

The 52-year-old actor was offered the lead in a new movie about the late former president and is considering the role, according to Page Six.

Cage is said to be unsure about the project because the film will portray Reagan in "a flattering light." He is reportedly worried taking the role might infuriate "the liberal Hollywood crowd" and "damage his career."

"It's way too early in the development process," the star's publicist, Stephen Huvane, said of the potential casting.

Will Ferrell was linked in the spring to a different project about the president titled Reagan. The actor pulled out after Reagan's daughter, Patti Davis, and others objected to the movie, a comedy that plays on the late leader's dementia.

"Alzheimer's doesn't care if you are President of the United States or a dockworker. It steals what is most precious to a human being -- memories, connections, the familiar landmarks of a lifetime," Davis wrote in an open letter to Ferrell in April.

"Alzheimer's is the ultimate pirate, pillaging a person's life and leaving an empty landscape behind," she added. "Perhaps for your comedy you would like to visit some dementia facilities. I have -- I didn't find anything comedic there."

Reagan served as president of the United States from 1981 to 1989, and died at age 93 in 2004. Cage is also slated for the thriller Arsenal with John Cusack and Mom and Dad with Selma Blair.