Australian actor Rebel Wilson has recently been added to the large, star studded cast of Working Title and Universal’s upcoming film Cats. It will be adapted from the sung-through musical of the same name, which was composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber and based on T.S. Eliot’s book Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats.
The musical follows the story of a tribe of cats known as the Jellicles. Over the course of a night, they must make the “Jellicle choice” which decides which cat will ascend to the Heaviside layer and come back to some new form of life. It was once Broadway’s longest running show for about 9 years and as of this year is the fourth longest running show in Broadway history. It has won a heap of awards over the years and has been extremely popular for decades. It seems about time for a silver screen version of the tale with Hollywood’s treatment of numerous musicals as seen with films like Hairspray, Phantom of the Opera, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, and Les Misérables.
Wilson will star alongside much of the previously announced cast including Idris Elba, Judi Dench, Jennifer Hudson, Taylor Swift, James Corden, and Ian Mckellen. Webber has attempted a film adaption of Cats in the past with the project unable to move into production, yet things are moving quickly with Universal’s bid at things. Tom Hooper, known for the HBO miniseries John Adams and films such as Les Misérables and The King’s Speech, will direct the film.
Universal will distribute it when it releases on December 20 of next year.
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