There have been rumblings of Hollywood wishing to give the concept of a Cat in the Hat movie another shot. The reason it’s taken so long is because, even 20 years removed, the giant hairball that was the live-action version still taints the brand.
A truly bad movie, even if it’s a relative financial success, has a way of salting the earth and making execs gunshy about redoing it “right.” It’s why it took this long to get a good adaptation of Frank Herbert’s Dune. Maybe forty years from now there will be an amazing, award-winning feature about Madame Web, but not tomorrow.
But it’s now been long enough for Cat in the Hat that all traces of yellowing DVD covers featuring Mike Myers’ grinning furry face have vanished, so…Warner Bros figures it’s safe. An animated take on the Cat is now in production and Bill Hader has been cast in the lead role.
Those who are familiar with the last thing Hader starred in, the dark HBO comedy Barry, will find the role a weird fit. Hader was VERY GOOD at nailing the steely-eyed gaze of a murderous psycho. To go from that to a beloved children’s book character is quite the leap. But at least it’s not another Chris Pratt role.
“The Cat in the Hat comes to the big screen in his animated theatrical feature film debut, doing what he does best — spreading joy to ‘happyless’ kids,” reads WB’s basic description of the plot. “In the film, The Cat takes on his toughest assignment yet… to cheer a pair of siblings struggling with their move to a new town.” One would think the Cat’s toughest assignment would be something more like a kid with a terminal disease, but…moving’s hard too, we guess.
The Cat in the Hat will also star Quinta Brunson (Abbott Elementary), Bowen Yang (SNL), Xochitl Gomez (Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness), Matt Berry (What We Do in the Shadows) and Paula Pell (Girls5eva). No release window has been announced yet.
