FILM · 1998 · GERMANY
City of Angels
24 archived facts 4 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
24 Interesting Facts About City of Angels
Interesting Facts (18)
- #001
The rooftop scene in which Dennis Franz and Nicolas Cage sit on a scaffold high above the city was shot for real. Both actors were afraid of heights.
- #002
When Maggie asks Seth what he does for a living, he tells her he is a messenger. In Greek, the word for messenger is "angelos", from which the word angel derives.
- #003
The man smoking next to Seth at the bar is film director Michael Mann.
- #004
The word "angel" is spoken only twice in the entire film, during a brief exchange between Seth and Cassiel as they walk on the beach to watch the sunset. It is the only time they explicitly claim to be angels.
- #005
This was the final film role of actor Dennis Franz, who retired from acting after his role in the television series "NYPD Blue".
- #006
When any of the angels is shown in a photograph, they rarely blink. Nicolas Cage actually practiced not blinking and by the end of the film could do it for several minutes. Once he became human, however, he could blink as much as he wanted.
- #007
Near the end of the film, during the "falling" sequence, Seth's memories are shown. One of them belongs to a pregnant woman. She is played by Elisabeth Shue, though only her belly is visible. Shue was actually pregnant, expecting her first son, Miles William, with Davis Guggenheim, who was born in November 1997. Shue and Cage had worked together on Leaving Las Vegas (1995).
- #008
Just before the falling scene, as Nicolas Cage prepares to fall, the music playing is the "Our Father" and "Hail Mary" prayers sung in Polish.
- #009
Once Seth becomes human, he can understand only the English language. This is the exact opposite of Wings of Desire (1987), in which Damiel (Bruno Ganz) can speak any language after falling to Earth and becoming human.
- #010
Although the film shows notable Los Angeles locations such as the Terminal Annex, Mulholland Drive, Los Angeles International Airport, Grand Central Market and Dodger Stadium, the library where the angels walk is not in Los Angeles but in San Francisco.
- #011
Most of the lifeguard towers seen when Seth and Cassiel go to the beach with the other angels to watch the sunset were added specifically for the film.
- #012
When Seth and Cassiel walk on the beach, their footprints in the sand disappear instantly.
- #013
The three deaths in the film occur at three ages of a human life: childhood (Susan), youth (Maggie Rice) and old age (Tom Balford).
- #014
In the film, the angels, even though they are not human, are portrayed by people of all ethnicities to represent the diversity of the human race.
- #015
The name of Meg Ryan's character, Maggie, is short for Margaret. Meg Ryan's real name is Margaret Emily Hyra.
- #016
At around the 1 hour 14 minute mark, as Seth and Nathaniel sit at the skyscraper construction site, the tails of Seth's trench coat resemble an angel's wings.
- #017
It was initially developed at Turner Pictures. When Turner and Time Warner merged in 1996, the rights were transferred to Warner Bros.
- #018
When the film aired on New Zealand's TVONE channel on Easter Sunday afternoon, April 16, 2017, the love scene between Seth and Maggie was cut for censorship reasons and not included in the daytime broadcast.
Characters & Cast (2)
- #019
Johnny Depp was initially considered for the role of Seth.
- #020
The name of Colm Feore's character is Jordan Ferris, a combination of the names of the superhero Hal Jordan/Green Lantern and his love interest Carol Ferris. They were eventually adapted in Green Lantern (2011), in which Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively played Hal Jordan and Carol Ferris respectively.
Easter Eggs & References (3)
- #021
When Seth falls to Earth, his memories appear in black and white, because as an angel Seth cannot see or distinguish colors. This is a nod to Wings of Desire (1987), in which angels also cannot see colors.
- #022
In the opening sequence, as the camera turns upward, you see 3 angels on top of a building and the building's number, 444. 444 is a direct reference to the angelic realm: "Thousands of angels surround you at this moment, loving and supporting you. You have a very strong and clear connection with the angelic realm, and you are an Earth angel yourself. You have nothing to fear - all is well."
- #023
The sequence in the library in which an old man reads a Hemingway book is a nod to Wings of Desire (1987). In that film, Curt Bois plays the elderly poet Homer, whose poetic thoughts are occasionally read by Damiel (Bruno Ganz). It is the same book Seth gives Maggie in the library after overhearing her, the one left on Maggie's nightstand.
Deeper Meaning (1)
- #024
When Meg Ryan looks in the mirror and Nicolas Cage has no reflection, the shot was achieved with motion control twice: once with Ryan and Cage, once without the actors, and the two were then combined. If you look closely enough, you can also see a few strands of Ryan's hair passing in and out where Cage's face was erased.
Sources & editorial notes
Reference databases
- IMDb
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