Everybody wants to be a cat, but not a ton of people want to direct cats. Count Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson in that rarefied latter group, because the Oscar winner behind “Summer of Soul” is making his narrative debut with a remake of the Disney animated feature “The Aristocats,” IndieWire has confirmed.
An individual with knowledge of the project told IndieWire that the film will be a “live-action hybrid reimagining” of the original film, a 1970 animated feature directed by Wolfgang Reitherman. In addition to directing, Questlove will oversee the music for the film. The script was penned by Will Gluck, director of the 2014 “Annie” and “Peter Rabbit,” and Keith Bunin, writer of the 2020 Pixar film “Onward.”
The project makes sense for Questlove in a way because the film’s most memorable moment is a jazz sequence, set to the song “Ev’rybody Wants to Be a Cat” — Quentin Tarantino claims the cat Duchess’s dance moves in that number inspired his direction of Uma Thurman for the iconic dance sequence in “Pulp Fiction.”
The original “Aristocats” focuses on a family of Parisian housecats owned by the extremely wealthy Madame Adelaide Bonfamille (Hermione Baddeley). After Adelaide signs over her entire fortune to her pets, her bitter butler Edgar (Roddy Maude-Roxby) kidnaps the cats in an attempt to obtain her fortune for himself. The film follows the cats, with the help of a friendly stray, on their journey back home. “Aristocats” received positive reviews upon release, and was a box office success, grossing $191 million on a mere $4 million budget.
The remake is one of many live-action or CGI remakes of classic Disney animated films currently in development. In April, “Peter Pan and Wendy” from Peter Lowrey will premiere on Disney+, May will see the release of “The Little Mermaid” starring Halle Bailey. There’s also a “Snow White” film with Rachel Zegler expected for 2024, and a prequel to the 2019 “Lion King” remake from Barry Jenkins.
Best known for his work as the drummer and frontman of the Roots, which serves as the in-house band for “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” Questlove made his directorial debut in 2021 with “Summer of Soul,” a documentary about the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival. The movie received critical acclaim, winning Best Documentary Feature at the Academy Awards.
Questlove executive produces “The Aristocats” via his production banner Two One Five Entertainment, along with Tarik Trotter, Shawn Gee, and Zarah Zohlman. Gluck produces the film through his company Olive Bridge.
Questlove is managed by Shawn Gee and repped by WME.
Deadline was the first to report news of “The Aristocats” remake.
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