Though skeptics were initially unenthused by the 2012 Les Miserable film, it went on to win loads of awards and cemented itself one of our favourite guilty pleasure, star-studded musical adaptations. Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, Russel Crowe, Amanda Seyfriedand Eddie Redmayne: what a quintet.
It's unspoken rule (we've decided) that all subsequent musicals recreated for the silver screen have to stand up to the Oscar, Golden Globe, BAFTA and SAAG Award winning tale. Few have come close - Mamma Mia! is of course up there with the best of them - and now that the cast for the upcoming rendition of Cats has been announced, we're desperately trying to predict how it'll fare.
So far we know that Jennifer Hudson (of Dreamgirls fame), Sir Ian Mckellan (lets not forget his sterling performance as Cogsworth in Beauty And The Beast), James Cordon (remember Into The Woods?) and Taylor Swift (erm, from the Taylor Swift music videos) are due to star in Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical. And while the amalgamation of somewhat rogue celebrities is common practice in the musical film genre - John Travolta, Amanda Bynes and Queen Latifah in Hairspray was exceptional - we're yet to visualise how the new Cats line up is going to work.
What we do know is that the film will be in the hands of_Les Mis_director Tom Hooper, so it's safe to expect a similar gloriously deep, dark, close-up-heavy treatment.According to Mail Online, it's been confirmed that Jennifer Hudson will play Grizabella, the Glamour Cat who sings the play's iconic powerhouse belter,_Memory._A worthy role for an Academy Award winning performer who is well versed in movie musical territory.
It's also understood that Ian Mckellan will take the role of wise Old Deuteronomy (as close to a feline Gandalf as we imagine possible) however Taylor Swift and James Cordon's parts are yet to be announced. A mixture of high anticipation and confusion is entirely appropriate as we wait to hear more about the film. Further casting is apparently underway so we've got our fingers crossed for four or five more high profile A-listers coming out of the woodwork to star in the production.
MORE: Films By Female Directors To Be Excited About In 2018
Debrief Films By Female Directors To Be Excited About In 2018
1 of 81. A Wrinkle In Time
Based on the book of the same name by Madeleine L'Engle, a movie adaptation directed by Ava DuVernay is on the way and if you haven't watched the trailer/seen that incredible Time magazine cover, you need to get on board because it's really exciting. It's a fantasy adventure film starring Oprah, Mindy Kaling and Reese Witherspoon and with this film Ava DuVernay has become the fourth woman and first African American woman to direct a film with a budget of more than $100 million. 23 March 2018
2 of 82. The Spy Who Dumped Me
Directed by Susanna Fogel, The Spy Who Dumped me is a comedy with Mila Kunis and Kate McKinnon starring as BFFs who find out that the guy who dumped one of them is - wait for it- a spy. At the moment we know very little else about the film beyond the fact that Mila wears a blond wig at some point but we'll keep you posted.
3 of 83. Lady Bird
Greta Gerwig's directorial debut comes in the form of Lady Bird, the already hotly anticipated coming of age story that we all wish existed back when we were still in school. In short, it's a beautiful film about a young woman who likes to go by the name Lady Bird who is trying to navigate all of the usual suspects: her mother, her best friend, going to college, sex and, well, herself. 16 February 2018
4 of 84. Blockers
Kay Cannon who wrote the screenplays for the Pitch Perfect films is the director behind this comedy about three parents who find out about their daughters' plan to have sex on Prom night (otherwise referred to as a Sex Pact, apparently) and try to stop it happening. ILeslie Mann is in it and she's great. 6 April 2018
5 of 85. The Darkest Minds
This is another book adaptation that you're going to want to get familiar with real quick. Directed by Jennifer Yuh Nelson and starring the incredible Mandy Moore, Amandla Stenberg and Gwendoline Crisitie, The Darkest Minds is all about the 2% of kids in America who survive a crazy disease and end up developing superpowers. It's got a bit of a Hunger Games meets Divergent vibe if you ask me. 14 December 2018
6 of 86. Can You Ever Forgive Me
Get ready for another dose of comedy fave Melissa McCarthy in this Marielle Heller directed project. She stars as the best-selling celebrity biographer Lee Israel (the film's based on her memoir, you see) who was well known for profiling big shots like Katherine Hepburn and Estee Lauder back in the 70s and 80s. That ism until she lost her groove and ended up selling forged letters and stuff. October 2018
7 of 87. High Life
Celebrated French director Claire Denis has only gone and directed her first English language movie. It's a sci-fi drama starring none other than Robert Pattinson, Juliette Binoche and Mia Goth and pretty much focuses on a group of convicts who are sent to explore a black hole (knowing that they probably won't be returning from space alive) in return for having their jail sentences reduced. It's about a father-daughter relationship, it's about family, it's about home, it's about the unknown.
8 of 88. You Were Never Really Here
And finally we have a thriller directed by Lynne Ramsay that promises to be the sort of thing that lingers in your mind for a while after watching. You Were Never Really Here is about a private 'contractor' who is tasked with recovering a teenage girl who's gone missing. It's pretty dark and violent and intense but packed a resounding punch at Cannes last year. 9 March 2018
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