Universal Sends Theaters Updated Version Of ‘Cats’ With “Improved Visual Effects” After Debut

Anthony D'Alessandro and Dino-Ray Ramos

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If you watched Cats on opening night, you may have seen a different version than others who saw it later in the weekend as sources tell Deadline that Universal Pictures sent out a memo to theaters saying that they will be sending out a new version of the big-screen adaptation of the Andrew Lloyd Weber Broadway musical that includes “improved visual effects”. Universal provided no comment.

Read the memo below:

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Hello – please share the following with your theater operations staff and managers:

DCDC and Deluxe-Technicolor will be sending updated FTR-20 SMPTE DCPs of Cats which include some improved visual effects. The runtime is unchanged.

FTR-20 will be available on DCDC satellite servers on Sunday 12/22 (satellite folder name: CatsSMPTEUSRelV2)

Non-satellite sites should receive hard drives on Tuesday 12/24

FTR-20 keys will go out Monday 12/23 at the latest

Please ingest the content as soon as you receive it, and replace FTR-12 with these updated FTR-20 DCPs.

Deadline has also learned that director Tom Hooper was literally working on visual effects for the film until the New York premiere on December 16.

After its pre-holiday debut, Cats received a less-than purr-fect response from audiences and critics. Meanwhile, its litter box office landed at an estimated $6.5 million opening, well below its $10M-$15M projection.

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