Nicolas Cage has taken a cue from Liam Neeson and signed on to star in his own "Taken"-esque thriller.
The Oscar-winning actor is in talks to re-team with his "Con Air" director Simon West" for "Medallion," an individual familiar with the project has confirmed to TheWrap.
Cage will play a former thief who has only a few hours to find his daughter after she's kidnapped and locked in the trunk of a New York taxi cab.
Clive Owen was previously attached to star, while Jason Statham had also been mentioned in connection with the lead role.
Former Us Weekly journalist David Guggenheim wrote the script for the action thriller. He segued into screenwriting after Universal paid big bucks for his spec script "Safe House," an action-packed thriller that will star Ryan Reynolds, Denzel Washington and Tim McGraw, who was recently cast as a spy.
Millennium Films has boarded the project as a financier, and is already shopping the package to buyers.
McG will produce "Medallion" through his company Wonderland Sound and Vision, while Aurelius' Matthew Joynes and Jesse Kennedy will also produce alongside James Holt.
Millennium's Avi Lerner, Danny Dimbort and Trevor Short will exec produce with Cassian Elwes and Wonderland's Mary Viola.
Cage has become Millennium's go-to-guy in recent years, having starred in the company's "Wicker Man" remake and the upcoming Summit release "Drive Angry." He also recently wrapped its kidnapping thriller "Trespass," which co-stars fellow Oscar winner Nicole Kidman. The actor next stars in Relativity's "Season of the Witch," which opens Jan. 7.
Cage is represented by CAA and his casting in "Medallion" was first reported by the Hollywood Reporter.
