Self-professed “Cats” fanatic Kristen Bell said she has yet to see the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical’s recently released film adaptation, but intends to view it twice in theaters — once with her kids and once with Mary Jane.
“I didn’t see it yet. But I’m planning on seeing it twice: one with my kids, ’cause they really wanna see it, and one with my ‘adult friends,’” Bell said Sunday, while pantomiming smoking a joint during a Television Critics Association panel for her upcoming animated Apple TV+ series “Central Park.”
When Josh Gad, who executive produces and also lends his voice to the animated series, asked his “Frozen” bud if he can join in her “adult” experience watching the critically panned Tom Hooper film, she responded: “100%.”
“I have everything set up, we just have to buy the tickets. And those obviously have to be separate viewing experiences,” she added, laughing. “But I plan on doing it twice, for sure.”
“Cats” hit theaters Dec. 20, but we’ll cut Bell a little slack for not having made it to a showing in the last month — let alone two — since she’s been kinda busy promoting “Frozen 2” and the final season of “The Good Place.” Oh, and “Central Park,” obviously.
Earlier in the panel for the Apple TV+ series, which launches this summer, Bell told reporters that her love for musicals began when she was a child, with “Cats” being the first to really ignite her obsession with the genre.
“I remember, once I saw ‘Cats,’ I was singing it. And also, as a kid, the movement of that show on stage is really cool, and so I was walking around like a cat,” Bell said. “And I remember I wanted to get the book and read it, OK? But it was in really small print so my mom struggled to find it in bigger print ’cause my eyes weren’t great.”
Along with Gad and Bell, the voice cast of “Central Park” includes Leslie Odom, Jr., Kathryn Hahn, Tituss Burgess, Daveed Diggs and Stanley Tucci. The series is written and executive produced by Loren Bouchard, alongside Gad and Nora Smith.