- “Let's go the f#@k to work.”
- ―Angel Cartwright[src]
Angel Cartwright was a fictional character in the film Last Angel in Hell, portrayed by Nicolas Cage. He is based on the real life Angel.
Fictional biography
Tragic past
Angel Cartwright was a detective in the Los Angeles Police Department. One night, while chasing a man suspected of draining a shopkeeper and his family of their blood, Angel and his partner Wesley were attacked by a group of vampires. Angel watched helplessly as Wesley was bitten and killed by the vampires. The city blamed him for Wesley's death and he was fired as a detective, so he opened his own private detective agency. Even then, he struggled with a lack of business and a period of alcoholism. Angel's girlfriend Sara was the one good thing that happened to him.
Later that year, at his wedding to Sara, Angel discovered a mysterious message amongst his wedding gifts; a wooden stake with the inscription "They took your partner. Take them down. We can help you kill the vampires." Moments later, Sara revealed herself to be a vampire, wanting to sire Angel so that they could be together forever (which Angel credited to her abandonment issues). Before she could, a group of vampires killed all of the wedding guests, including Angel's mother. Their spilled blood allowed the Devil to walk the Earth and transform Los Angeles into Hell.
- “I can't believe it. Vampires exist and I didn't stop them. My fiancé is one of them and my mom is dead... And the town I grew up in... "City of Angels." Name's officially ironic.”
- ―Angel Cartwright[src]
Battling the Devil
Two months later, Angel had become a loner, his only friend being a dog named George. One day, while eating at the Doublemeat Palace, he got into a fight with a pair of demons who planned to eat the other customers. He was interrupted by the OverLorne, a Demon Lord who publicly revealed Angel's role in unleashing Hell on Earth. As Angel vowed to make amends, he was joined by Fred and Gunn, the vampire hunters who sent the stake to him as a wedding gift. Angel decided to take down the Devil alone, rejecting Fred and Gunn's offer of friendship.
Angel tracked the Devil to Satan's Charity Ball. He infiltrated the party, and, in order to evade security, made love to a demon female in a private room. However, he couldn't enjoy himself because he was not over Sara yet. Three minutes later, he discovered that Sara was now the Devil's girlfriend. As the Devil prepared to steal his guest's "soulbloode", Angel attacked. Sara—who Angel dubbed "Spike" due to her spike-like fangs—grabbed him, carrying him out of the building and throwing him off a cliff. She warned him to stay away, or she would kill him herself.
Realizing that he couldn't fight the Devil alone, Angel reunited with Fred and Gunn at their gas station base. Together, the team interrogated the OverLorne, battled the Devil's aerial army, and stole weapons from Los Angeles Air Force Base. They then launched their attack on the Devil himself, and Angel passionately reconciled with Spike. Spike used this opportunity to give Angel the enchanted hell dagger capable of defeating the Devil. Angel stabbed the Devil with the dagger, killing him and saving Los Angeles.
No longer alone
- “The team stays together. My days of aloneness are over.”
- ―Angel Cartwright[src]
Months later, Los Angeles had returned to exactly how it was before, due to a mysterious "reboot"-like event. Angel was no longer a loner, having accepted the team as his friends. Spike was also pregnant with Angel's baby, which she planned to name "Connor". Joined by the ghost of Wesley, the team prepared to face a new threat; the Wolf, the Ram, and the Heart.
