Fantasy The film, which has a 20% score on review site Rotten Tomatoes, was not cheap to make. In his 1982 Broadway review of Cats, the New York Times theater critic Frank Rich famously wrote, “If you blink, you’ll miss the plot.”. This would make the film one of the biggest box office flops of 2019. Don’t faint from surprise when we tell you, but Cats bombed at the box office with a $6.5 million opening. Will curiosity for the art form now known in popular culture as “digital fur technology” translate into commercial success? Cats isn't faring much better at the global box office. Domestic. Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. (The following are domestic box office figures via Box Office Mojo.) You may opt-out by. On paper, Cats seemed like a likely hit. Failure at the box office is likely to come as a surprise to Universal. Universal's revenue fell 21% from last quarter, its parent company Comcast reported Thursday. Trump's speech makes Stephen Colbert choke up, 'The LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special' reimagines fan favorites as toys, Late-night hosts stress over the undecided presidential election, 'Schitt's Creek' actresses bring comic flair to holiday ad, Seth Meyers has a replacement for Dr. Fauci, 'Borat' creator shows unseen footage of prank on 'Colbert', 'SNL' takes on the final presidential debate, Jimmy Kimmel picks on Donald Trump's debate lines, Town renames sewage plant after late-night comedian, See Bruce Willis revive famed 'Die Hard' character in epic ad, 'Jeopardy!' Cats. Before the film’s premiere, Taylor Swift and Jennifer Hudson repeatedly emphasized how they had not seen the film and signed on “for the journey”. Comcast debuted its answer to cord-cutting, which has consumers trading in cable for streaming and online viewing, with. The critically panned film, which had a reported budget of $95m (£72m), made only $6.62m (£5m) during its opening weekend and is projected to lose Universal at least $70m (£53m), the LA Times reports – while Deadline reports the project could lose at least $71m (£54m) and Variety reports it could lose up to $100m (£76m). In recent years, musicals over the holidays have been big business. earned $144 million domestic and $609 million worldwide. “If history is any guide, movies that are overshadowed by bigger films upon initial release can often find favor over time with audiences once the noise of whatever juggernauts wane a bit,” said Paul Dergarabedian, a senior media analysts at Comscore. ", The film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical made just $60 million worldwide since its opening in late December. Cats appears set to make movie hiss-tory – as a major box office failure for Universal Pictures.. After the Christmas 2012 success of Les Miz, it wasn’t exactly the craziest idea in the world to give him $95 million to make a family-friendly, star-studded adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s long-running stage show. Earnings for its film unit decreased 49% in the quarter and box office revenue declined nearly 60%, The company noted that its comparable quarter, the fourth quarter of 2018, had hit films like ". Meanwhile, movie theaters will be crowded with everything from family films like “Jumanji: The Next Level” to awards hopefuls such as “Little Women.” However, holiday releases tend to have big multiples since people often visit their local multiplex more than once between Christmas and New Year’s. Cats, with Taylor Swift as Bombalurina, is on its way to becoming a surprise failure for Universal Pictures. Despite the great renaissance of musicals at the box office following 2002’s Oscar Best Picture winner Chicago ($306M-plus WW), sometimes the … All rights reserved. There’s a difference between spending $175 million on Dolittle (thus demanding it become the biggest talking animal fantasy ever to break even) and spending $95 million on a Cats movie featuring famous movie stars, helmed by a filmmaker with a proven financial and artistic track record and scheduled for Christmas. Recent successes including “La La Land,” ($446 million), “Rocketman” ($195 million) and “Mamma Mia! EY & Citi On The Importance Of Resilience And Innovation, Impact 50: Investors Seeking Profit — And Pushing For Change. Disclaimer. With No Time to Die, Fast & Furious 9 and Minions 2: The Rise of Gru set to give Disney a fight this Spring/Summer, Cats and even the likely disaster that is Dolittle may be about as damaging to Universal as was Disney’s John Carter just two months before The Avengers. Of course, since Cats only cost $95 million, a performance akin to Momma Mia! It cost $100 million to produce and lost at least $70 million for Universal, according to. But “Cats,” in a way, is its own kind of four-quadrant movie: those genuinely excited (including fans of the property), those cautiously curious, those interested in a hate-watching and those who wouldn’t be caught dead buying a ticket. The film is up for 10 Oscars including best picture and best director at next month's Academy Awards. Stephen King Fans Are Dying to Get These Masks. Cats is a bad movie. All Rights Reserved, This is a BETA experience. I've studied the film industry, both academically and informally, and with an emphasis in box office analysis, for nearly 30 years. I have extensively written about all of said subjects for the last 11 years. ... Related Stories Similar Movies. Whether that success was due to being the first modern “blockbuster” fantasy musical of its era, folks liking the Tony-winning show or that tourists could see with their kids if they wanted to expose them to large-scale live-theater, Cats has been a very profitable brand. The company added 442,000 high-speed internet customer customers, but its video business took a hit losing 149,000 customers. He cautions: “Of course, [that is] if the reviews and audience reaction are strong.”. It doesn't help that Tom Hooper's film adaptation of the musical was panned by critics, too. Box office $75.5 million [4] [5] Cats is a 2019 musical fantasy film based on the 1981 Tony Award -winning stage musical of the same name by Andrew Lloyd Webber , which in turn was based on the poetry collection Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats (1939) by T. S. Eliot . Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. A tribe of cats called the Jellicles must decide yearly which one will ascend to the Heaviside Layer and come back to a new Jellicle life. The company reported that net income rose about 26% from the year prior. Scott Mendelson Contributor. The news was brighter elsewhere in Comcast's earnings on Thursday. Weekend | © IMDb.com, Inc. or its affiliates. The Movie … The company's stock was down as much as 3.5% on Thursday due to concerns about the possibility of more cable subscriber losses ahead. His follow-up, Universal’s Les Misérables, won an Oscar for Anne Hathaway, was again nominated for Best Picture and earned $442 million worldwide on a $61 million budget. The No. Internationally, it's only made an additional $4.4 million, which puts its global cumulative box office gross at about $10.9 million. That’s not even counting animated offerings like The Princess and the Frog ($224 million) and Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel ($443 million) in 2009, Tangled ($600 million) in 2010, Frozen ($1.276 billion) in 2013, Moana ($690 million) and Sing ($562 million) in 2016 and Frozen II ($1.2 billion in 2019). and Adaptation Musical Performance Play Adaptation. Plus, seeing Jason Derulo as a full size-cat cloaked in digital fur, even sans his junk, left movie-going audiences deeply uncomforted. Cats bombed in the box office with a $6.5 million opening. For starters, it introduced itself with a catnip-fueled nightmare of a trailer. company. Drama While it seems logical to cite their lack of familiarity with the original Broadway run as making the movie go above their heads, it’s not, as even theater critics panned the show during its original hey-day. Outside of Golden Globe voters (who didn’t show much love Monday save for a lone best song nomination for Taylor Swift and Webber), very few have seen “Cats” in its entirety, so it’s impossible to know what word of mouth looks like. Family Even if “Cats” is overshadowed by “Star Wars” on box office charts, industry prognosticators believe it could claw its way to a long life in theaters. The film costs much less than the $170 million spent on Mary Poppins Returns and it was scheduled alongside The Rise of Skywalker in the hopes of mimicking Mamma Mia!’s triumph alongside The Dark Knight in the summer of 2008. Showdowns. Daily | International | Overall, Cats’ chances of redemption do not look paw-sitive. Box office watchers aren’t betting against “Cats,” and not just because the stage version has been a draw for decades. Then, it followed that bad decision with an equally unsettling second trailer. For a minute there, it seemed like Cats could become a hit thanks to its star-studded cast: Taylor Swift, Judi Dench, Ian McKellen, Idris Elba, Jennifer Hudson, Jason Derulo, Rebel Wilson, James Corden, and Grumpy Cat herself. Tom Hooper’s adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Weber’s classic Broadway show fell well short its projected debut of $15-20 million, placing it the No. Some have disappointed (Phantom of the Opera in 2004, Rent in 2005, Nine in 2009), but even the softer performers (Sweeney Todd in 2007, Annie in 2014) held their own alongside the year-end biggies. © 2020 Forbes Media LLC. “Cats” is hoping to find itself in that company rather than the ignominious group of popular musicals-turned-movies like “Rent” ($31 million) and “Rock of Ages” ($59 million) that were seen as derivative. Cats’ dismal box office performance – it’s headed for a hundred million dollar loss – is just further evidence that the folks that made it never understood why the original was so popular in the first place. My outlets for film criticism, box office commentary, and film-skewing scholarship have included The Huffington Post, Salon, and Film Threat. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc.2018. December 20, 2019 It too would open near Christmas, mimicking the success of Les Misérables and Illumination’s animated Sing ($562 million in 2016). Movie theaters are reopening. This was thanks in large part to its broadband service. It is still the biggest-grossing Best Picture winner, in global box office, since The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King ($1.1 billion in 2003). During an interview, James Corden, who plays Bustopher Jones, admitted he has not seen the film and “heard it’s terrible”. Negative reviews of the film, however, have become almost an art form. Cats was confusing box office analysts since the first trailer was released and now that its reviews are a mess, things are not looking any better. The Guardian’s Peter Bradshaw skewered the film in a review written completely in verse (taking inspiration from the poetry of TS Eliot, the source material for Cats). I've studied the film industry, both academically and informally, and with an emphasis in box office analysis, for nearly 30 years. That film sung its way to $441 million in ticket sales and a handful of Oscars nominations. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. Cast information Crew information Company information News Box office. It was a very well-known IP. But then the film became its own worst enemy when it came to luring an audience in. Lionsgate’s “Bombshell,” a drama about the female Fox News anchors who went public with sexual harassment allegations against Roger Ailes, is launching nationwide the same weekend. ‘Cats’ Is A Box Office Bomb That Looked, On Paper, Like A Safe Bet. Cats was confusing box office analysts since the first trailer was released and now that its reviews are a mess, things are not looking any better. “Though opening against ‘Rise of Skywalker’ may not deliver immediate perceived dividends,” Dergarabedian predicts, “patience, time and audience enthusiasm could turn the film into a marathon-style hit that will play well into 2020.”. Musicals are a polarizing genre, making it tricky when it comes to predicting box office fortunes. Bohemian Rhapsody earned over $900m(£680m) globally, Les Misérables $441m (£333m), and The Greatest Showman, a sleeper hit, $435m (£329m). Things are off to better start for Universal in 2020. Like, really, really bad. Into this history stepped Cats, starring a bunch of known and liked performers, directed by a guy whose last two wholly commercial flicks topped $400 million each and whose last three films all won major Oscars, based on a well-known and seemingly well-liked IP and scheduled to open at the same time which has seen near-constant examples of musical hits and/or blockbusters. As many expected, the movie adaptation of the musical Cats turned out to be the terrifying CGI-fest that no one was asking for - and its box office receipts really hammer home the failure. Box Office Mojo and IMDb are trademarks or registered trademarks of IMDb.com, Inc. or its affiliates. Universal shelled out $100 million to produce the film, a figure that doesn’t include global marketing or distribution costs. Follow me at @ScottMendelson and "like" The Ticket Booth on Facebook. Even domestic gross like Annie ($85 million) with overseas numbers like Mary Poppins Returns ($177 million) would have been fine. As anticipation for the cinematic spectacle heightens ahead of its Dec. 20 release, “Cats” is still on pace to make $15 million to $17 million in its inaugural outing. The future of Cats got worse once it was released. Should Saturday Night Live Replace This Actor as Joe Biden? Cats may be something of a punchline among theater nerds and/or artistic snobs, but the damn thing ran for 25 years in London and on Broadway. The Dark Knight earned $533 million domestic and $1.004 billion worldwide, while Mamma Mia! The all-star fantasy, starring the likes of Taylor Swift, Idris Elba, Jennifer Hudson, Jason Derulo, Rebel Wilson, Judi Dench, Ian McKellen and James Cordon, has become a profoundly modern disaster. Yes, I would argue that Cats is a surprise flop. Cats grossed $27.2 million in the United States and Canada, and $47.4 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $74.6 million, against a production budget of about $95 million. Universal positioned the film as counter-programming against “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker,” and Disney’s final chapter in the Skywalker saga is projected to land one of the biggest opening weekends of the year. We asked an expert if it's safe to go, Everything you need to know about Peacock, NBC's new streaming service. As industry experts point out, movie musicals have become cash-cows for studios in recent years. "1917" is also a critical darling. “Reviews and audience buzz will be crucial for ‘Cat’ [in terms of] long-term playability,” Dergarabedian emphasized. All times are ET. The late 2010 release grossed $139 million domestic and $414 million worldwide on a $15 million budget. In retrospect, we can chalk up its failure to miserable reviews, the lack of marquee characters, the fact that the IP wasn’t all that beloved and the idea that Cats was a case of “awareness doesn’t equal interest.” Nonetheless, sans hindsight, a big-n-splashy family-friendly musical bombing over Christmas is something that almost never happens. Instead, the filmmaking team behind the box office disaster got a lump of coal. Going back at least to 2002 with Rob Marshall’s Oscar-winning (and $171 million domestic/$307 million worldwide-grossing) adaptation of Chicago, year-end musicals have been relatively consistent moneymakers. under which this service is provided to you. BoxOfficeMojo.com by IMDbPro - an © Copyright 2020 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media, LLC. He writes: “As they gaze at the greenscreen and sashay and crawl/ It’s weird to behold them all gurning and acting/And why do so many resemble Darth Maul?” Other critics have described it as “a descent into madness” and a “sight no humans should see”. Deadline Hollywood calculated the net loss of the film to be $113.6 million. Cats was a big spectacle in the making — one so big, in fact, that its budget hummed along to the tune of $100 million. 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We asked an expert if it's safe to go New York (CNN Business) Universal took a pretty big hit last quarter largely because of the box office disaster that was "Cats." Conditions of Use Meanwhile, the film’s own stars are distancing themselves. Such past successes make it clear that Cats has failed to connect with audiences, or at least not in a good way. And who could forget the in-your-face collaboration between Swift and Webber, “Beautiful Ghosts”? Musicals are a polarizing genre, making it tricky when it comes to predicting box office fortunes. How could someone use that much money and still fail to create a final product worth raving about? Director Tom Hooper has proven his musical chops with “Les Miserables,” his 2012 movie adaptation starring Jackman, Anne Hathaway, Russell Crowe and Amanda Seyfried. Latest Updates: I have extensively written about all. The Universal Pictures film is bound for the litter box as one of 2019’s biggest flops, Last modified on Thu 2 Jan 2020 07.36 AEDT. Scott Mendelson Contributor. rarity leaves Alex Trebek lonely, These TV shows are changing the way immigrants are portrayed, Late-night hosts mock Trump over NYT tax report, Movie theaters are reopening. Both reviews and social media reactions are embargoed until Dec. 18, potentially a move to control online chatter. That explains why Universal is sending a new version of Cats with updated visual effects to movie theaters despite the original version of the movie having already been seen by audiences. Cats. The news comes after Universal hit the brakes on its Oscars campaign for Cats, quietly pulling the film from its “for your consideration” page. ‘Cats’ Is A Box Office Bomb That Looked, On Paper, Like A Safe Bet. Weinstein Company’s The King’s Speech won Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actor for Colin Firth in 2011. Critics tore the movie apart with an onslaught of negative critical reviews, calling it “declawed”, “a triumphant disaster”, and “a future punchline”. All Time | (EMEA, Domestic), Comedy “Cats” will certainly be pitched for competition. However, the musical centered on ringleader P.T. 1 Source For Breaking Music, Film, and TV Headlines, Terry Gilliam rips Black Panther: “I think the people who made it have never been to Africa”, Ariana Grande releases new live album k bye for now: Stream, Trump Supporters Dance to Rage Against The Machine's "Killing In The Name", 10 Timeless Political Songs for Election Day, Lori Loughlin Is a "Wreck" After First Days in Prison: Report, Bruce Springsteen Yearns for a Return to America's Glory Days: "We've Lost So Much in So Short a Time", The Perfect Last-Minute Halloween Masks Are Here, All Your Favorite Halloween Movies Are Streaming Here. Everyone is talking about it, but nobody is actually seeing it in theaters. Cats appears set to make movie hiss-tory – as a major box office failure for Universal Pictures. The Danish Girl wasn’t as “big,” but it still earned an Oscar for Alicia Vikander and $64 million worldwide on a $15 million budget. The Cats should have been in the bag. First, say what you will about Tom Hooper as a filmmaker, but his movies tend to make money and win awards. The irony of Cats is that its failure is not so much an example of Hollywood hubris but rather a case of a seemingly surefire property going down in flames. IMDb The company also reported a profit of roughly $3.16 billion in the fourth quarter. 4 for the weekend behind Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Jumanji: The Next Level, and Frozen 2. A $95 million adaptation of a long-running and acclaimed musical stage show featuring a bunch of popular movie stars, directed by an Oscar-winning filmmaker whose last two big studio pictures were outright blockbusters, and set to open on Christmas? Cast information Crew information Company information News Box office. ‘Can't believe the negative publicity’: your reviews of Cats. Of course, it doesn’t help that the original script is, well, deeply bizarre. All rights reserved. Apparently most of the film critics had never seen the original musical before. “The Greatest Showman” was essentially written off after bowing with a soft $8.8 million in 2017. The director claimed he was rushing to finish the movie in the 36 hours leading up to its premiere. And we also had the truly successful likes of Les Misérables ($442 million in 2012), Into the Woods ($214 million) in 2014, La La Land ($441 million) in 2016, Pitch Perfect 3 ($185 million) in 2017, The Greatest Showman ($434 million) in 2017 and Mary Poppins Returns ($349 million) in 2018. James Corden, Laurie Davidson, and Francesca Hayward in Tom Hooper's 'Cats'. Universal’s “Cats” was in need of a holiday miracle. “Cats,” the big-screen adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s smash musical, has been the subject of much internet scrutiny since Universal first debuted footage over summer. Here We Go Again” ($394 million) have helped the genre enjoy a kind of box office renaissance. Tom Hooper’s critically-trashed Cats is now allegedly going to lose $70 million, which happens when your $95 million-budgeted musical earns just $38 million in 12 days of global release. Movie theaters are reopening. Variety and the Flying V logos are trademarks of Variety Media, LLC. Musical. Like the stage version, “Cats” centers on a tribe of cats called the Jellicles, one of which will be selected to receive a new life. Why Is 'Saturday Night Live' Suddenly Booking So Many Older Rock Bands? Here We Go Again ($394 million) would have been a huge win. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices Copyright S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates. “Cats” could also benefit from a high-wattage cast that includes Idris Elba, Judi Dench, Jennifer Hudson, Taylor Swift, James Corden, Rebel Wilson, Ian McKellen and Jason Derulo. Finally, Bombshell is expanding wide, but it looks like it won’t be a major factor at the box office this weekend and will have to rely on long legs to carry it to profitability. New York (CNN Business)Universal took a pretty big hit last quarter largely because of the box office disaster that was "Cats. Barnum (portrayed by the ever-charming Hugh Jackman) became a sleeper hit as singalong screenings and repeat viewings carried the movie to a mighty $434 million worldwide. It’ll take all kinds to fuel the lengthy theatrical run needed for “Cats” to turn a profit. Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Morningstar: Copyright 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. What gives? The critically panned film, which had a reported budget of … We asked an expert if it's safe to go New York (CNN Business) Universal took a pretty big hit last quarter largely because of the box office disaster that was "Cats." Finally, Bombshell is expanding wide, but it looks like it won’t be a major factor at the box office this weekend and will have to rely on long legs to carry it to profitability. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. Gayle King Talks Wild Election Night: ‘I Slept in My Clothes and My Spanx’, Rob Lowe Downsizes to 1970s Montecito Fixer-Upper, Read Trent Reznor’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Speech for Nine Inch Nails, This Ultra-Rare Patek Philippe World Timer Sold For $5.5 Million at Phillips’s Geneva Auction, Google Steers Into DOJ Antitrust Suit Ahead of a Potential Biden White House, 50 of the Best Beauty Gift Sets And Stocking Stuffers Everyone Will Love. All rights reserved. More importantly, how could someone use that much money and allegedly miss their deadline like Hooper did? Privacy Policy News | Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors.