Jason Derulo has revealed he expected big things from his acting debut in 2019 blockbuster Cats.
The 30-year-old singer, who played Rum Tum Tugger in the movie adaptation of the hit stage show, believed Cats “was going to change the world” after he first saw the trailer.
“For the longest time, I was trying to figure out what’s the perfect first role?” he explained to the Telegraph.
“Cats checked all the boxes. You can’t get a more start-studded cast, you don’t get a more respected director than an Oscar winner, and Rum Tum Tugger is a legacy role, a standout character in a classic musical.
“Even when I saw the trailer, I got chills down my spine! I thought it was going to change the world.”
However, Tom Hooper’s vision didn’t quite translate on screen how he may have wanted, with critics getting their claws out for Cats.
Despite a star-studded cast that included Taylor Swift, Judi Dench and Idris Elba, the film was derided for it strange visual effects – leading to the Evening Standard’s critic branding it as "nearly as obscene as The Human Centipede".
Having previously defended the film as “an incredible piece of art”, Talk Dirty singer Derulo has now feels he’s learned a lesson in regards to Cats.
“You can’t wait for the perfect moment, because that might not be your moment. So you’ve just got to go for gold. That’s how I’ll move forward," he said.
Cats has since been mocked by many of its stars, with both James Corden and Rebel Wilson poking fun at the film’s criticism by dressing up as their characters from the flop film at the 2020 Oscars.
Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, who was behind the hit stage version, has recently took a belated swipe at the movie adaptation.
“The problem with the film was that Tom Hooper decided that he didn’t want anybody involved in it who was involved in the original show,” Lloyd Webber told the Sunday Times. “The whole thing was ridiculous.
