Studio releases 1st look on set of movie about legendary Raiders coach

Amazon MGM Studios has released its first look of its production of “Madden” on social media.

Nicolas Cage stars as the Raiders Hall of Fame coach, and Christian Bale checks in as Raiders owner Al Davis in the pic.

Your first-look at Nicolas Cage as John Madden and Christian Bale as Al Davis on set of the upcoming film, Madden. Production is currently underway.

The film follows Madden’s remarkable journey—from his Super Bowl-winning partnership with Al Davis and the Raiders, to creating… pic.twitter.com/jmmF4uy8LR

— Amazon MGM Studios (@AmazonMGMStudio) May 14, 2025

“The film follows Madden’s remarkable journey—from his Super Bowl-winning partnership with Al Davis and the Raiders, to creating Madden NFL, and becoming one of the most iconic voices in football history,” the studio said on X.

David O. Russell is directing the film, which also stars John Mulaney as Trip Hawkins, Kathryn Hahn as Virginia Madden, and Sienna Miller as Carol Davis.

In August, Raiders owner Mark Davis told the Review-Journal that he had faith in Cage’s casting: “I think he can do it, if he can resemble John. I thought he was fantastic in ‘Wild at Heart,’ the David Lynch movie, which was amazing. He’s won an Oscar (for “Leaving Las Vegas”). I think he’s great.”

Mark Davis added that he hopes Madden, who coached the Raiders to their first Super Bowl victory, is treated fairly. Davis reminded that Madden stepped down from coaching on his own after 10 seasons. Madden died in December 2021.

“There is a lot of revisionist history, especially after someone has died, when you make a movie about them,” Davis said. “John had a hell of a story — he quit coaching because he was afraid to fly. He would just turn white. But then he had a great new career after coaching, as an analyst and becoming famous with the video game.”

Contact Tony Garcia at tgarcia@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0307. Follow @TonyGLVNews on X.