Academy award winning actor Nicolas Cage poses for the media at a news conference for his new film Jiu Jitsu being filmed on the eastern Mediterranean island nation of Cyprus, in the Cypriot capital Nicosia on Saturday, June 29, 2019. Cage said the film which is a fusion of the action and science fiction genres which he has admired and grew up with drew him to the project. He said Cyprus had a “good spirit” for him which he said informs his performance. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) – If left to them, actor Nicolas Cage and writer-director Mike Figgis might want to rename their celebrated movie “Leaving Las Vegas.”

Maybe “Losing Las Vegas.” Many, many tourists can relate. And that’s no shot at the gaming industry.

Figgis says on an episode of The Hollywood Reporter podcast the two were never paid $100,000 apiece as promised by Lumiere Pictures for the 1995 film.

Both Cage and Figgis resurrected their careers with the film, which tells the story of a suicidal screenwriter who falls in love with a Las Vegas sex worker. Cage, who makes his home in Las Vegas, won an Oscar for Best Actor, and Figgis was nominated for two awards, including Best Director.

Figgis says on the podcast that Lumiere Pictures said the film never went into profit. It had a limited release in October 1995 and then was released nationwide in February 1996. Reports are the film, budgeted at $4 million, earned between $32 million and $49 million.

“Whatever,” Figgis tells The Hollywood Reporter. “I mean, my career then took off again, and the next film I did, I got really well paid. And within a year [Nic] was earning $20 million a film, so that was quite good.”