Honestly, we need to talk about what happened in 2019. It was a weird time. People were arguing about the ending of Game of Thrones, the world felt a little less heavy, and then Tom Hooper released a trailer that fundamentally broke the collective internet's brain. I’m talking about cats the movie musical, a fever dream of a film that cost $100 million and gave us "digital fur technology" instead of a coherent plot. It's been years, and yet, the fascination hasn't died down. If anything, it’s mutated into a cult phenomenon that film students will probably be dissecting for the next fifty years.
Why does it stick with us?
Maybe it’s the sheer audacity. You have Oscar winners like Judi Dench and Ian McKellen crawling around on all fours, drinking milk out of saucers, and wearing coats made of... their own fur? Or maybe other cats' fur? The logic is thin. The movie is based on Andrew Lloyd Webber’s stage smash, which itself was based on T.S. Eliot's Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats. On stage, the abstraction works because you’re watching dancers in spandex and face paint. It’s theatrical. It’s a literal masquerade. But when you apply high-fidelity CGI to make James Corden look like a realistic-yet-humanoid ginger tabby, things get slippery.
The Uncanny Valley of Cats the Movie Musical
The biggest hurdle for cats the movie musical was always going to be the "uncanny valley." That's the psychological space where something looks almost human, but not quite, and it triggers a deep-seated "fight or flight" response in our lizard brains. When the first trailer dropped, the reaction wasn't "Oh, how whimsical." It was more like, "Why do the cats have human breasts and wedding rings?"
It was a total design crisis.
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The production was famously rushed. Reports from Variety and The Hollywood Reporter detailed how visual effects artists were working 80-hour weeks right up until the premiere. In fact, Tom Hooper actually sent an "updated" version of the film to theaters after it had already been released because some of the CGI was unfinished. In the original theatrical cut, you can see Judi Dench’s human hand—complete with her wedding ring—appearing on screen because the digital fur hadn't been rendered over it yet. It was chaos. Pure, unadulterated cinematic chaos.
A Cast That Deserved Better (or Maybe Just Different)
Let's look at the lineup. Jennifer Hudson. Idris Elba. Taylor Swift. Jason Derulo. This wasn't some low-budget indie experiment; it was a star-studded tentpole. Hudson, playing Grizabella, actually delivers a powerhouse vocal performance of "Memory." If you close your eyes, it’s beautiful. If you open them, you see a cat with snot dripping down its nose while it weeps in a junkyard.
It's a bizarre juxtaposition.
- Taylor Swift plays Bombalurina and sprinkles catnip like she’s at a rave.
- Idris Elba plays Macavity and, at one point, takes off his coat to reveal... more fur?
- Rebel Wilson's character, Jennyanydots, unzips her own skin to reveal a sparkly outfit underneath.
- Then there are the cockroaches with human faces.
We don't talk about the cockroaches enough. It’s one of the most unsettling sequences in modern film history. There is a specific kind of bravery required to sign onto a project like this. You have to assume that everyone involved truly believed they were making something visionary. Hooper had just come off the success of Les Misérables, which won Oscars and made a ton of money. He used the same "live singing" technique here, but while live singing makes sense for a gritty French revolution, it feels a bit strange when applied to a magical feline ritual.
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Why the "Butthole Cut" Became a Legend
You can't discuss cats the movie musical without mentioning the internet's obsession with the "Butthole Cut." Shortly after the release, a rumor started circulating—fueled by an anonymous VFX artist on Twitter—that a version of the movie existed where the cats had, well, realistic anatomy. The hashtag #ReleaseTheButtholeCut trended for days.
Seth Rogen even live-tweeted his first viewing of the film while high, which probably helped cement its status as a "must-watch while intoxicated" experience. Eventually, the VFX crew clarified that they hadn't intentionally added those details, but rather that the way the fur rendered created some "unfortunate shadows" that had to be airbrushed out. It’s the kind of lore that keeps a movie alive long after it leaves the cinema.
The Financial Fallout and Cult Status
Financially, the movie was a disaster. It grossed around $75 million worldwide against that massive $100 million budget (not including the tens of millions spent on marketing). Universal Pictures took a significant hit. But in the world of cult cinema, a "flop" is just a "masterpiece in waiting" for a very specific type of audience.
Today, cats the movie musical has found a second life. It’s become a staple of "bad movie nights" and "shadowcast" screenings, similar to The Rocky Horror Picture Show. People go to theaters specifically to laugh, hoot, and marvel at the choices made by the creative team. There is something weirdly joyful about a failure this spectacular. It’s not boring. You can call it many things—terrifying, misguided, psychedelic—but you can’t call it boring.
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Lessons for Future Filmmakers
What can we actually learn from this? For starters, just because you can do something with technology doesn't mean you should. The "digital fur technology" was a feat of engineering, but it lacked the soul of the stage show’s costume design. It stripped away the imagination and replaced it with a literalism that the material couldn't support.
Also, the tone was all over the place. Was it a kids' movie? A high-art musical? A body-horror fever dream? By trying to be everything, it ended up alienating almost everyone except the irony-poisoned denizens of the internet.
How to Experience Cats the Movie Musical Today
If you haven't seen it yet, or if you're planning a rewatch, here is how to get the most out of it:
- Watch it with a group. This is not a solo journey. You need witnesses. You need people to turn to and ask, "Did that just happen?"
- Research the stage show first. Understanding that the plot is basically just "a bunch of cats introduce themselves until one of them dies and goes to space" helps manage expectations.
- Look for the glitches. Keep an eye out for the floating feet and human hands. It’s a fun game of "spot the unfinished CGI."
- Appreciate the dance. Despite the weird visuals, the dancers in the background are world-class. Francesca Hayward, a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet, is genuinely talented as Victoria, even if her character is mostly there to look confused.
In the end, cats the movie musical is a monument to Hollywood hubris. It’s a reminder that even with all the money and talent in the world, things can go spectacularly sideways. And honestly? I’m glad it exists. The world is a little bit more interesting with this strange, furry anomaly in it.
Actionable Next Steps
If you want to dive deeper into the chaos, check out the "making of" featurettes on the Blu-ray. They are fascinating because they show the actors on set in green motion-capture suits, acting their hearts out against nothing. You can also find several long-form video essays on YouTube from VFX professionals who break down exactly why the fur rendering felt "off" to our eyes. Finally, if you're in a major city, look for "interactive" screenings—they are the only way to truly experience the Jellicle Choice in its natural habitat.