The Oscar for Best Cat Actor (Cator?) Goes To…

The Grand Budapest Hotel. Gone Girl. Saint Vincent. Big Hero 6.

What do these movies have in common?

It’s true all were nominated for and/or won a Golden Globe or Academy Award for best movie, director or actress. But beyond that?

Since you’re a reader of this blog I can only hope the answer is as clear as the whiskers on your cat’s face. 

The answer my friends is cats.

All the movie mentioned above star cats, even if one was of the animated variety and another faced a gruesome demise.

Their time has come.

Coincidence? I think not.

The time has come that cat actors (cators?) – animal actors of all variety in fact – get the recognition they deserve, not their handlers.

I mean, just look at the headlines:

Whether it’s about how cute they are, why directors may or may not like them, their mental stability – these cats are getting press, which in turn promotes the movie. When’s the last time a grip or catering made headlines and drive box office sales?

Yet catering is featured in the credits as is the grip – though no one can tell me what that even is – and are likely on IMDB. But try to find the cat in a movie, or who trained/handled the cat (or cats)? May the force be with you.

At best, if you’re looking for it very closely, the name of the animal agency and cat may quickly shoot across the screen at the end of the credits – never to be seen again.

Whatever you do don’t blink! I have gotten kicked out of a movie theater before for doing this – full security and all. Granted, it was a preview of a new release (reason #203 I would make a terrible detective).

Last year I was fortunate enough to interview Dawn Hessler –  instead of getting a restraining order filed against me (thanks Dawn!) given the lengths I had to go through to track her down. She’s not only very kind, but she’s an extremely accomplished animal trainer who was responsible for all the tree of the cats on the set of  “Inside Llewyn Davis,” which was by-the-by, nominated for multiple Golden Globes and Academy Awards (as an aside, her very own cat is the one who flushes the toilet in “Meet the Fockers”).

Perhaps I should have considered a career as a private investigator. Oh never mind, I forgot for a moment that “subtle” and “stealth” do not exist in my vocabulary! Ha!

Stay tuned to learn more about the cats from GONE GIRL when I post my interview the very man who handled them on a set where David Fincher ruled (and where we’ll divulge a secret about Mr Fincher he doesn’t want you to know!).

Thank goodness for the website Cats on Film that does a great job documenting cats in film over the years. Is there a particular movie starring a cat that’s a favorite of yours?  And would you have guessed what all those movies had in common if I hadn’t told you?

I leave you with this very tiny bit of sweetness from Big Hero 6 (which now I must see based on this clip!).

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