The Talking Kitty Cat Movie

The Talking Kitty Cat Movie is a 2021 action-crime comedy film based on the YouTube web series Talking Kitty Cat by Steve Cash. Written, directed and produced by James Cameron, directed by F. Gary Gray, produced by Chris Morgan and Celia DeCosta-Cash (in her feature production debut) and written by DeCosta-Cash, Steve Cash, and Neal H. Moritz based on a screenplay by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, Pat Casey, and Josh Miller, the film stars Mark Hamill, Chris Evans, and Kristen Bell, and stars the voices of Tom Holland, Kate McKinnon, John Mulaney, Emma Stone, and Awkwafina.

In the film, Sylvester gets catnapped by an evil, wealthy and cunning businessman named Dr. Purrfect, which leaves Steve and Celia DeCosta worried for their cat. They later enlist the help of a street-smart alley cat named Whiskers and a quirky animal behaviorist named Dr. Meow. A film based on Talking Kitty Cat was first announced in late 2016, with it being produced by Paramount Pictures, and planned to be CGI-animated. However, in November 2019, the rights were shifted to 20th Century Fox. James Cameron of Lightstorm Entertainment was signed to the project as writer, director and producer. Steve Cash, the founder and at-the-time CEO of his company Talking Kitty Cat, LLC, was signed to the project as a storywriter. The film was produced by Lightstorm Entertainment, TSG Entertainment, Original Film, and Talking Kitty Cat, LLC. Visual effects production was handled by Wētā FX, Rhythm & Hues Studios, and Blur Studio. Production began in May 2017, and wrapped up in November 2020.

The Talking Kitty Cat Movie premiered at the Dolby Theatre on January 26, 2021, and was released theatrically worldwide by 20th Century Studios on January 29, 2021. It received generally positive reviews from critics, with praise for its animation, visual effects, cleverly crafted story, voice acting, performances by Hamill, Evans and Bell, musical score by Hans Zimmer, and plot. It was a box office success, grossing $780.3 million against its production budget of $120 million. The success of the film spawned a series, Talking Kitty Cat: Animated!, that aired on March 18, 2021. A sequel, titled The Talking Kitty Cat Movie 2: The Abduction of Shelby, was released on February 17, 2023, and a third film, The Talking Kitty Cat Movie 3: The Last of Sylvester, is in development with a planned release date of April 25, 2025.