James Bond has spent decades collecting almost-cast legends like Q collects gadgets. Clint Eastwood was approached, Burt Reynolds entered the conversation, and generations of stars have hovered around the tuxedo without ever ordering that martini.

Nicolas Cage never became 007, but he ended up forming something far more personal with the man who defined Bond on film. After sharing the screen with Sean Connery in Michael Bay’s gloriously explosive The Rock, Cage found a mentor, drinking companion, and genuine friend.

Six years after Connery’s death at 90, Cage has revealed the surprisingly ordinary invitation he wishes he had accepted.

During his October 10 spotlight panel at New York Comic Con, Nicolas Cage looked back at the friendship with Sean Connery that grew out of making The Rock in 1996. The relationship apparently became considerably warmer once the cameras stopped exploding things.

“He was very avuncular. He was somebody that I considered a friend. We were friends. I would visit him at his house,” Cage told the audience as reported by People.

He further revealed  that the two would share scotch and talk late into the night about Connery’s life and cinema, with Cage previously revealing that he even called the Scottish legend “Maestro” while shooting The Rock. Yet Connery kept extending one invitation that Cage repeatedly declined: golf.

Cage preferred spending his free time fishing on his boat and never learned the game. Looking back, that choice clearly stings. He admitted that he wishes he had simply joined Connery on the course while the opportunity still existed. The regret carries extra emotional weight because Connery helped ignite Cage’s desire to act in the first place. 

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Cage may still miss his old mentor, but another dark detective chapter appears ready to open in his own career.

At the same Comic-Con panel, Nicolas Cage casually dropped another piece of news before HBO had the chance.

“I think I might do a season of True Detective,” he told the crowd before jokingly wondering whether he was allowed to announce it himself. HBO has yet to formally confirm his casting, although reports linking Cage to Season 5 have circulated since 2025.

The next installment is expected to be led again by Night Country creator Issa López and reportedly moves the anthology to New York’s Jamaica Bay. The timing is particularly interesting after Spider-Noir. Cage’s first regular television role cast him as hard-boiled private investigator Ben Reilly in 1930s New York, combining superhero pulp with smoky detective fiction.

Prime Video cancelled the series after one season despite strong reviews and 11 Emmy nominations which later resulted in five wins. Cage has since described television as a practical way to avoid stacking film productions endlessly while still supporting his family. A leap from Marvel noir into HBO’s bleak crime universe therefore feels strangely natural.

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What do you think about Cage’s regret over Sean Connery, and would he be a perfect fit for True Detective? Let us know in the comments.