Nothing makes a movie cuddlier than a good cat actor taking the spotlight. This week, Dreamworks’ Shrek spinoff, Puss In Boots, showcases the franchise's top swash-buckling kitty. But he’s not the first movie star to be the cat’s meow.
Check out these 13 other fantastic movie felines.
Oliver
The titular cat from Disney’s Oliver and Company is an adorable orange kitten voiced by Joey Lawrence. He’s got a dog friend with Billy Joel’s singing voice and the movie’s best-known song is the catchy as heck “Why Should I Worry?” The orphaned Oliver is cute and he’s just looking for a good home. You want the most fun animated cat in the world? It’s obviously Oliver.
Mr. Jinx, Meet the Parents
Mr. Jinx is the catalyst (pun intended!) for Ben Stiller’s character’s embarrassment in front of mean dad Robert DeNiro and the reason for the memorable line: “I have nipples, Greg, can you milk me?” That’s right. Ben Stiller could milk a cat. Mr. Jinx is also smart: he knows how to use a human toilet and can even flush. Wow.
Mr. Bigglesworth, Austin Powers
Mr. Bigglesworth is probably the most quotable cat in movie comedy history. Sitting on the lap of Austin Powers baddie Dr. Evil, he’s as bald as his owner. Sure, he’s just an homage to the white Persian cat from the James Bond movies, but Bigglesworth is worth his own space on this list. For instance, Dr. Evil says, "When Dr. Evil gets angry, Mr. Bigglesworth gets upset. And when Mr. Bigglesworth gets upset, people DIE!"
The cat from The Grudge
There are multiple cats in both the American and Japanese versions of The Grudge, but none are scarier than the creepy meowing little boy. This is because this character and his pet cat were both murdered by the boy’s father in close proximity to each other. When the boy came back in the afterlife, he was a... “cat-ghost.” So yes, this cat is a hybrid little boy-cat ghost. Oh horror genre, you’re great.
The cat in Cat's Eye
This stray cat has some serious bad luck. In Stephen King’s 1985 film Cat’s Eye, a tabby travels across a city getting involved in three fatal incidents. He survives electric shocks, successfully crosses a busy street winning a compulsive gambler some money, and gets adopted by a young Drew Barrymore. She nicknames him the General and he saves her from a troll attack. Fast thinking, General!
Sassy from Homeward Bound
Sassy is a bit of a princess, sure, but she learns to love two rascally dogs and finds the inner strength to get home to her loving owner. In Homeward Bound, Sassy (voiced by Sally Field) is thrown out of her spoiled comfort zone and matures into a more selfless, better friend to those two mutts she once hated. No, there’s nothing in your eye. You're just being moved to tears by a cat.
The Aristocats
“Everybody wants to be a cat,” the Aristocats sing, and you know what? It’s true! In the Aristocats movie, cats have dance parties, paint with their paws and hang out drinking milk in Paris. Aside from all the kidnapping and ransom, being a cat sounds pretty fancy. The three multi-colored kittens, their posh mom (voiced by Eva Gabor) and the rag-tag group of alley cats win our hearts every time.
Cat, Breakfast at Tiffany’s
Breakfast at Tiffany’s heroine Holly Golightly isn't exactly painted as the nicest lady in town. In fact, thinking she might run off to Brazil, she releases her darling pet cat, simply named Cat, into the rain from a taxi cab. After that, her boyfriend Paul confronts Holly about behaving irresponsibly and she runs off into the downpour to find her pet. Finding Cat makes Holly realize she needs to be a better person. So cute!
Cheshire Cat, Alice in Wonderland
The Cheshire cat is a seriously creepy character in both the Alice in Wonderland cartoon and Tim Burton’s live action version. He’s classified as a sort-of villain because his mischievous nature gets Alice into trouble but in the 2010 live action movie, he redeems himself by taking the Mad Hatter’s place during his execution. He’s a tricky guy, but he’s not all bad. Even if his smile is really, really unsettling.
Crookshanks, Harry Potter
Crookshanks is Hermione Granger’s sour orange kitty in the Harry Potter films. The cat’s squashed face is his defining characteristic, though JK Rowling confirmed that Crookshanks is actually part cat/part Kneazle, an intelligent, intuitive cat-like creature. Crookshanks is smart enough to figure out that Scabbers is actually Peter Pettigrew and ends up saving the wizarding trio’s lives. He also befriends Gary Oldman’s Sirius Black, so you know this cat has good taste.
D.C., That Darn Cat
That Darn Cat is a remake of a 1965 film of the same name. The 1997 version stars Christina Ricci as a 16-year-old cat owner who loves her Maine Coon named D.C. (short for Darn Cat). Every night, D.C. goes out and causes trouble in the neighborhood. D.C. helps bring some excitement to Ricci’s character’s life and helps solve a town-wide mystery. So that Darn Cat is actually a pretty cool cat.
Garfield
Say what you want about the Garfield movie, but Garfield the character is one lovable feline. The cartoon cat has been around in comic strips daily since 1978. He eats lasagna, he gets into trouble and he hates Mondays. (I mean, don't we all?) Okay, so he’s not the best -- he’s pretty lazy and mean to Odie -- but he sure is entertaining. Even Jon Arbuckle can get on board with that.
Siamese Cats, Lady and the Tramp
If you thought the twin girls from The Shining were creepy, you may want to avoid watching the Siamese Cats scene from this Disney movie. The hissing duo sing a probably racist song about being “Siamese, if you please,” and practically slither around the house, making Lady feel very unwelcome. They're weird. too in-sync and probably offensive--so if that’s what the animators were going for, they succeeded.
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