Patricia Arquette and Nicolas Cage's Relationship Timeline: A Look Back

Among the cohort of celebrity marriages to end in divorce is the notable, if not bizarre, coupling of Oscar-winning actors Patricia Arquette and Nicolas Cage.

Before the pair embarked on their unusual courtship, Arquette recounted on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen that Cage declared, "You're gonna marry me soon," shortly after meeting, to which she responded, "No, man, we've never even gone on a date. Let's slow it down." 

However, their relationship continued to move at breakneck speed, with the two marrying in 1995 only to separate several months later. In the years since the dissolution of their marriage, Cage has starred in countless films and remarried four times; his second marriage was to the late Lisa Marie Presley, whom he wed in 2002 and filed for divorce less than four months later. He has three children and married Riko Shibata in 2021.

Arquette has had further success on television, playing Allison Dubois on the NBC drama Medium from 2005 to 2011. Her performance in Richard Linklater's decades-spanning tome Boyhood earned her an Academy Award in 2015. She welcomed daughter Harlow in 2003 with actor Thomas Jane, whom she wed in 2006 before their divorce in 2011. Arquette has been romantically linked to painter Eric White since 2014.

Here's a look back at Patricia Arquette and Nicolas Cage's relationship.

Late 1980s: Patricia Arquette and Nicolas Cage first meet

In the late '80s, Arquette ran into Cage and Willard star Crispin Glover at Canter's Deli in Los Angeles, and they both told the then-19-year-old Arquette they'd marry her. Talk about a meet-cute! But Cage, who is five years her senior, was apparently more committed than Glover and asked Arquette to provide a list of things ("like a quest") for him to find and bring her to prove his worthiness as a spouse. 

According to Paper magazine, the Severance actress played along, offering a list of seemingly impossible finds that included J.D. Salinger's autograph (he issued notoriously few signatures throughout his career), a black orchid (which doesn't actually exist), a Lisu tribe wedding costume, and a Bob's Big Boy statue.

"One by one, they started coming to me," Arquette told WWHL host Andy Cohen of the objects on her list. Instead of a black orchid, Cage found a purple one and showed up at Arquette's home with a can of black spray paint.

"She wouldn't come out, but I could see her peeking down from the top floor," Cage recalled to Playboy in 1996. "In my very showy way, I whipped the orchid out of my pocket. Then, I whipped out the paint can and started spray-painting the orchid black. She was freaked out."

He continued, "I rang the doorbell again, and she came down. I just gave it to her and got back on my motorcycle and left." 

Next, Cage found a rare letter written by Salinger, bought it for $2,500, and again showed up at Arquette's home bearing gifts. She was playing hopscotch in the street with her girlfriends when Cage arrived. He dropped the autograph in a cigar box outside and left. Later, she called him in a tizzy and told him to stop, as she once said, "It scared me." 

Cage said he had a chainsaw ready and was prepared to steal a Bob's Big Boy statue when she agreed — not to marry, but to go away with him.

They had planned to go to Cuba but were stalled in Mexico due to an issue with their airplane tickets. Cage's behavior sent him and Arquette on their separate ways. Both began respective families soon after: Cage welcomed son Weston with then-girlfriend Christina Fulton and Arquette, son Enzo with then-boyfriend Paul Rossi.

April 1995: Patricia Arquette and Nicolas Cage get married

Fast forward to 1995, where the actors run into each other at the same L.A. deli they met years earlier. 

"I needed to be reassured that the depth of his love would be as brave as before," Arquette told The New York Times on reevaluating their connection nearly a decade later. Apparently, it was Arquette who proposed — popping the question at Cage's house, where she arrived "dressed head to toe in black vinyl, carrying a big purple wedding cake," reported Paper. Luckily, this was when the National Treasure star realized he was "with the right woman."

They wed atop a cliff in Carmel, California, two weeks after their chance encounter. The only witnesses to their nuptials were Carmel's former police chief and "a pod of sea otters," per People.

1995-1996: Patricia Arquette and Nicolas Cage separate

The trajectory of Cage and Arquette's marriage is somewhat unclear. E! News reported that the pair separated nine months after marrying and spent years filing and withdrawing divorce papers.

Arquette, however, says the rumors of their early separation were untrue. 

"There were times when we weren't living together because we were fighting, but it wasn't as reported, and I didn't feel that I needed to explain that," she told The Telegraph in 2015. "There were times when my mom was dying [from breast cancer in 1997], and I was living with her, taking care of her. There were times when he was away working on a movie. It was our thing. I still don't feel like I owe it to anyone. It's funny when people are so wrong, and they put you in this position and decide who you are."

2001: Patricia Arquette and Nicolas Cage's divorce is finalized

In 2001, five years after their alleged separation, Arquette and Cage's divorce was finalized, citing "irreconcilable differences."

"It's always hard to make that decision to get divorced," Arquette told Paper in 2002. "We've both moved on with our lives, and I think it's important to honor the people we're with now and concentrate on the future."

Though their union reportedly found a "mutual and respectful" end, Cage admitted to The Guardian in 2018 that he and Arquette hadn't spoken "in a long time."