‘Cats’ Trailer Becomes Top Twitter Trend in Reaction to Furry CGI Felines
The “Cats” trailer dropped Thursday afternoon, and Twitter pounced. At the time of this writing, the movie was the top trending topic worldwide on Twitter with over 300,000 tweets. While that’s only a fraction of the record 50 million tweets that “Avengers: Endgame” accrued, it’s still an impressive initial response for a film based on a 38-year-old musical.
If you haven’t seen the trailer yet, the actors in Tom Hooper’s “Cats” all retain their human bodies and faces, but are covered in CGI fur and possess pointy ears and tails. Some viewers found the anthropomorphism unsettling, while others — like star Taylor Swift — were thrilled. Reacting to her transformation into a feline, the singer tweeted, “I am a cat now and somehow that was everything.”
But if you wade through the many memes and reactions to the trailer Thursday, you’ll see people having a hard time finding the right words to express their feelings.
Also Read: 'Cats' Trailer Gives Furry First Look at Idris Elba, Taylor Swift and James Corden (Video)
“I don’t know what I expected from ‘Cats” ‘digital fur technology’ but the short answer is NOT this. My brain has melted. My eyes are bleeding. There is no god,” entertainment journalist Kristy Puchko said on Twitter. “Maybe we were too harsh on Sonic.”
Puchko is referring to “Sonic the Hedgehog,” which spawned endless memes and perplexed reactions back in April, causing the producers to push back the film until they got the character design right.
The comparisons did not stop there. Others pointed to the 2003 Mike Myers live-action take on “The Cat in the Hat,” or to Hermione Granger after she drank a spiked Polyjuice Potion in “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.” Some have even grafted actor Nicolas Cage’s face onto their own house cats in their own fan casting.
Also Read: 'Sonic the Hedgehog' Director Vows to Change Character Design After Fan Backlash
As fun as the memes are, some people still genuinely enjoyed the trailer. It is, after all, based on a lavish Broadway musical with actors in cat costumes, so what did you expect?
“It’s not ‘Cats’ if it’s not tacky,” critic K. Austin Collins wrote on Twitter. “Frankly i could use more kitsch!! This is Andrew Lloyd Webber baby.”
“I call to order the campaign #DoNotFixTheCats. we like the cats, we just like them in the way where you like to make fun of something,” another user wrote.
Another chimed in, “Listen, that CATS trailer is bonkers. And we need more bonkers. I regret to inform you, I dug it.”
Also Read: Taylor Swift Gets Her Claws Out in 'Cats' Behind-The-Scenes Look (Video)
Take a look at some of the online reactions below. “Cats” opens in theaters Dec. 20.
I don't know what I expected from CATS' "digital fur technology" but the short answer is NOT this.
My brain has melted. My eyes are bleeding. There is no god. pic.twitter.com/HMeM0ixal1
— Kristy Puchko (@KristyPuchko) July 18, 2019
Maybe we were too harsh on Sonic. pic.twitter.com/RbFxtw9Nbt
— Kristy Puchko (@KristyPuchko) July 18, 2019
Technology has only evolved so one day Taylor Swift could become an actual cat. ???? pic.twitter.com/mZKKNZ4Rv0
— Alex Goldschmidt (@alexandergold) July 18, 2019
I don't know why you're all freaking out over miniature yet huge cats with human celebrity faces and sexy breasts performing a demented dream ballet for kids.
— Louis Virtel (@louisvirtel) July 18, 2019
Cats is going to be the greatest movie of all time
— Megan Amram (@meganamram) July 18, 2019
Wow, CATS looks great pic.twitter.com/sONg5jgu7e
— Asher ???????? (@buckligerzwerg) July 18, 2019
therapist: taylor swift as a cgi cat isn’t real, she can’t hurt you
taylor as a cgi cat: pic.twitter.com/Q8m9aI1v9x
— matt 36 (@stayewme) July 18, 2019
tfw you realize it's actually just about cats pic.twitter.com/KxqbTE5rOf
— Richard Lawson (@rilaws) July 18, 2019
BC actually stands for Before Cats so you are witnessing the dawn of a new era
— E. Alex Jung (@e_alexjung) July 18, 2019
WHY TOM HOOPER'S CATS WILL UNITE A FRACTURED WORLD AND SAVE US ALL: A VIDEO ESSAY
— Lindsay Ellis (@thelindsayellis) July 18, 2019
me pretending to be a cat in that damn movie so i can find idris elba’s furball pic.twitter.com/dZ2sfv1mKR
— ???????????????????? (@DAREDEVllLS) July 18, 2019
Cats (2019) dir. Tom Hooper #oneperfectshot pic.twitter.com/3sF0jnxmCu
— Amanda Smith (@AmandaRTubbs) July 18, 2019
Furries waiting for the new #Cats movie to come out. pic.twitter.com/NyZYPkAzp3
— Alanonay (@xtinaisninja) July 18, 2019
it's not CATS if it's not tacky.
— k austin collins (@melvillmatic) July 18, 2019
Unless Titus is in the new Cats movie, it’s wrong. pic.twitter.com/cOvw5wDoOX
— Allie Goertz (@AllieGoertz) July 18, 2019
when you see the cats trailer pic.twitter.com/n3RWaSv7P6
— Megan Farokhmanesh (@Megan_Nicolett) July 18, 2019
this is EXACTLY what i imagine happens when i leave my cat home alone pic.twitter.com/qxzz2i0NFF
— Anne T. Donahue (@annetdonahue) July 18, 2019
Well I’m seeing CATS with Joe Biden and I don’t care what you people think!!!!!!
— billy eichner (@billyeichner) July 18, 2019
The Cats the world deserved pic.twitter.com/TE5ANWECEZ
— patto (@Paniwi9) July 18, 2019
have the creators of the cats movie ever seen 1) a cat or 2) cats the musical or did they just see these medieval paintings of cats and run with it pic.twitter.com/thoGlBxiFg
— lee | 22 (@rauIesparza) July 18, 2019
Live look at Universal execs checking in with social media to see how people are reacting to the trailer for CATS pic.twitter.com/pjzeBQnhl7
— Scott Wampler (@ScottWamplerBMD) July 18, 2019
ok but in CATS' defense this route doesn't make any LESS sense than imposing "photorealism" onto singing, dancing cats
— Angie J. Han (@ajhan) July 18, 2019
nobody at all:
cats the movie: pic.twitter.com/mtPehMWFWS
— max (@goodishomens) July 18, 2019
The Cat in the Hat (2003) cats (2019) pic.twitter.com/A4fmFLvmSQ
— WeenieWonsh (@WeenieWonsh) July 18, 2019
What we wish the #Cats movie was… pic.twitter.com/wz00sSjdY2
— James Andrawes (@JamesAndrawes) July 18, 2019
the James Corden cat is what I see in the corner of my room when I have sleep paralysis pic.twitter.com/l9I9CBh9VG
— georgia ???? (@brightroars_) July 18, 2019
wait a minute, this cats movie looks good. pic.twitter.com/3wZoS3eYxv
— ???????????????????????????????????????? (@ki11monger) July 18, 2019
I worry that the cats movie creative team will see people ripping apart the cgi cats and try to pull a sonic movie by redoing everything
I call to order the campaign #DoNotFixTheCats. we like the cats, we just like them in the way where you like to make fun of something
— Jack Saint (@LackingSaint) July 18, 2019
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