Andrew Lloyd Webber Reaffirms His Hatred For The ‘Cats’ Movie

Andrew Lloyd Webber's feelings about the 2019 "Cats" movie remains unchanged, and he's again sharing his disapproval over the adaptation. The Andrew Lloyd Webber Reaffirms His Hatred For The ‘Cats’ Movie first appeared on The Blast

Legendary composer Andrew Lloyd Webber still can’t get over his intense dislike for the “Cats” movie several years after its release. He continues to slam the adaptation, sharing his unfiltered thoughts and reaffirming that the movie never lived up to his expectations.

Andrew Lloyd Webber Bought A Puppy To Recover From ‘Cats’

The musical “Cats” debuted on the West End in 1981 and has since had several revivals over the years. In 2019, the “Cats” movie was released, and Webber, who composed the songs for the original musical, was not too happy about the outcome, to say the least.

Webber has openly criticized the movie since its release, and now, he is once again reaffirming his stance. In an interview with Mo Rocca on CBS Sunday Morning, he said, “Because of the appalling ‘Cats’ movie, I went out and bought myself a little Havanese puppy.” He named the puppy Mojito and said he was a therapy dog.

When Rocca asked what he didn’t like about the movie, Webber answered, “Well, is this a very, very long interview we’re doing? Because it could be a very, very long list.”

The Composer Talked About His Puppy In The Past

Back in 2021, Webber shared the same story. As he told Variety, he thought the “Cats” movie was “off-the-scale all wrong.” He recalled the first time he saw the movie and said to himself, “Oh, God, no,” adding that it was the first time in his life that he thought about getting a dog due to his disappointment.

Webber said he takes Mojito everywhere with him, saying that he wrote the airline to say that he was so “emotionally damaged” by the “Cats” adaptation that he needed his therapy dog with him at all times.

When he was asked to prove that he needed the dog, he said, “Just see what Hollywood did to my musical ‘Cats’.” Webber said the airline responded by approving his request, adding he didn’t need a “doctor’s report” as proof.

Andrew Lloyd Webber Criticized The ‘Cats’ Director

Months after “Cats” was released, Webber shared his thoughts about the movie. In an interview with the Sunday Times, Webber said he believes one of the issues was director Tom Hooper. He stated that Hooper, who directed “Les Misérables” and “The King’s Speech,” “decided that he didn’t want anybody involved in it who was involved in the original show.”

“The whole thing was ridiculous,” Webber exclaimed. “Cats,” a live-action/CGI adaptation, featured a star-studded cast, including Judi Dench, Idris Elba, Jennifer Hudson, James Corden, Ian McKellen, Jason Derulo, and Taylor Swift. However, the star power wasn’t enough to save the movie.

It was heavily criticized for the use of CGI and odd artistic choices, with a version of the film released to theaters incomplete. “Cats” was also a box office flop, earning only about $75 million worldwide on a budget of $100 million.

Andrew Lloyd Webber Enjoyed Working With Taylor Swift

For Webber, the only good things that came from the “Cats” movie were Mojito and getting to work with Taylor Swift. Webber was credited as a composer and executive producer in the adaptation, and he co-wrote the new song “Beautiful Ghosts” that was included in the movie.

In an interview with Variety in 2021, Webber said, “It was one of the few enjoyable experiences [on the film]. It was probably the enjoyable experience.” The composer praised Swift for being professional and said she put effort into studying the musical’s source material before writing the song. “It wasn’t just a lyric thrown together at all. I did enjoy working with her very, very, very much,” Webber said.

In 2021, “Beautiful Ghosts” was nominated for Best Song Written for Visual Media at the Grammys. It was also nominated for Best Original Song at the Golden Globes in 2020.

The ‘Cats’ Movie Dominated The Razzies

The Golden Raspberry Awards, also known as the Razzies, is an annual ceremony that celebrates the failures in cinema.

In 2020, “Cats” dominated the show, earning six Razzie awards, including Worst Picture, Worst Supporting Actress (Rebel Wilson), Worst Supporting Actor (James Corden), Worst Screenplay, Worst Director (Tom Hooper), and Worst Screen Combo (for “Any Two Half-Feline/Half-Human Hairballs”).

The Andrew Lloyd Webber Reaffirms His Hatred For The ‘Cats’ Movie first appeared on The Blast