Cats Set to Lose at Least $71 Million

Even if Tom Hooper‘s Cats uses up all of its nine lives it won’t be enough for the film to make a profit or break even. New analysis of the film’s box office versus its production and promotion expenses via Deadline paints a bleak picture for the adaptation of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, with the film expected to lose at least $71 million once it’s all said and done, though actual loses could be even higher.

Per the report, if Cats manages to pull in a global box office of $100 million — $40 million domestic and $60 million overseas — it still won’t be enough to cover the cost of production and promotion among other expenses. The film cost around $95 million to make and Deadline has estimated around $115 million in global P&A spend. When you start to add in additional costs, the disparity between box office and expense grows even wider.

And that $71 million loss is an “at least”. It’s likely that the actual financial loss will be much higher. As of this article’s writing, Cats is sitting at a $37 million global box office and it’s unclear how much more the film will actually make. As is, Universal Pictures has officially removed Cats from their For Your Consideration campaign, meaning that the studio is not seeking any awards nominations — at the Academy Awards or otherwise — for the film.

There’s also the matter of continued poor reviews of the film. Critics have savaged the film, as have audiences, and even Westworld actress Evan Rachel Wood had some choice words for just how bad she found the movie to be.

“……..#cats is actually worse than I thought it would be, And I already thought it would be horrible,” Wood wrote in a deleted Tweet. “But….I am actually speechless. Why would you change the choreography? I…am SPEECHLESS. Its not the casts fault (sic). Its…maybe the worst thing I have ever seen. Ever.”

She added, “It was NOT the cast’s fault. They changed all the iconic choreography. Took out 70 percent of the main characters. Changed the plot. I grew up in theatre. I was married to a dancer. I have massive respect for what they do, which is why this was such a letdown and missed opportunity for that community. I have been in some bad films. No one is immune. But also AHHHHHHHHHH!!!”

Even Cats star James Corden didn’t have the most glowing endorsement of the film, admitting that he hadn’t even seen it.

“I haven’t seen it; I’ve heard it’s terrible.”

Cats stars James Corden, Judi Dench, Jason Derulo, Idris Elba, Francesca Hayward, Jennifer Hudson, Ian McKellen, Taylor Swift, and Rebel Wilson.

Have you seen Cats yet? Do you think it will be able to break even with its global box office haul or will it lose a lot of money? Let us know in the comments!