The best of the internet’s cat videos are coming to the big screen this weekend. Cat Video Fest is a 73-minute, G-rated selection of all things feline —silly, cuddly, sentimental and comedic—that’s playing in more than 500 independent theaters in the U.S. and Canada.
A portion of ticket proceeds benefit cat-focused charities, shelters and animal welfare organization. Since 2019, it’s raised over $1 million.
The videos are curated by Will Braden, the Seattle-based creator of the comedically existential shorts, Henri, le Chat Noir. His business cards read: “I watch cat videos.” And it’s not a joke or an exaggeration. Braden watches thousands of hours of internet videos to make the annual compilation.
“I want to show how broad the idea of a cat video can be so there’s animated things, music videos, little mini documentaries,” Braden said. “It isn’t all just, what I call, ‘America’s Funniest Home Cat Videos.’ It’s not all cats falling into a bathtub. That would get exhausting.”
Now in its eighth year, Cat Video Fest is bigger than ever, with a global presence that’s already extended to the UK and Denmark, and, for the first time, to France, Spain, Japan and Brazil. Last year, the screenings made over $1 million at the box office.
In the early days, it was a bit of a process trying to convince independent movie theaters to program Cat Video Fest. But Braden, and indie distributor Oscilloscope Laboratories, have found that one year is all it takes to get past that hurdle.
“Everywhere that does it wants to do it again,” Braden said.
Current theatrical partners include Alamo Drafthouse, IFC Center, Nitehawk, Vidiots, Laemmle and Music Box. The screenings attract all variety of audiences, from kids and cat ladies to hipsters and grandparents and everyone in between.
“It’s one of the only things, maybe besides a Pixar movie or Taylor Swift concert, that just appeals to everybody,” Braden said.
And the plan is to keep going.
“We’re not going to run out of cat videos and we’re not going to run out of people who want to see it,” Braden said. “All I have to do is make sure that it’s really funny and entertaining every year.”
Marvel’s first family has finally found box office gold. “The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” the first film about the superheroes made under the guidance of Kevin Feige and the Walt Disney Co., earned $118 million in its first weekend in 4,125 North American theaters, according to studio estimates Sunday.
That makes it the fourth biggest opening of the year, behind “A Minecraft Movie,” “Lilo & Stitch” and “Superman,” and the biggest Marvel opening since “Deadpool & Wolverine” grossed $211 million out of the gate last summer. Internationally, “Fantastic Four” made $100 million from 52 territories, adding up to a $218 million worldwide debut. The numbers were within the range the studio was expecting.
The film arrived in the wake of another big superhero reboot, James Gunn’s “Superman,” which opened three weekends ago and has already crossed $500 million globally. That film, from the other main player in comic book films, DC Studios, took second place with $24.9 million domestically.
The box office success of “First Steps” and “Superman” means “the whole notion of superhero fatigue, which has been talked about a lot, can I think be put to rest. I always say it’s bad movie fatigue, not superhero fatigue,” said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for data firm Comscore.
“First Steps” is the latest attempt at bringing the superhuman family to the big screen, following lackluster performances for other versions. The film, based on the original Marvel comics, is set during the 1960s in a retro-futuristic world led by the Fantastic Four, a family of astronauts-turned-superhuman from exposure to cosmic rays during a space mission.
The family is made up of Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal), who can stretch his body to incredible lengths; Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby), who can render herself invisible; Johnny Storm (Joseph Quinn), who transforms into a fiery human torch; and Ben Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), who possesses tremendous superhuman strength with his stone-like flesh.
The movie takes place four years after the family gained powers, during which Reed’s inventions have transformed technology, and Sue’s diplomacy has led to global peace.
Both audiences and critics responded positively to the film, which currently has an 88% on Rotten Tomatoes and promising exit poll responses from opening weekend ticket buyers. An estimated 46% of audiences chose to see it on premium screens, including IMAX and other large formats.
The once towering Marvel is working to rebuild audience enthusiasm for its films and characters. Its two previous offerings this year did not reach the cosmic box office heights of “Deadpool & Wolverine,” which made over $1.3 billion, or those of the “Avengers”-era. But critically, the films have been on an upswing since the poorly reviewed “Captain America: Brave New World,” which ultimately grossed $415 million worldwide. “Thunderbolts,” which jumpstarted the summer movie season, was better received critically but financially is capping out at just over $382 million globally.
Like Deadpool and Wolverine, the Fantastic Four characters had been under the banner of 20th Century Fox for years. The studio produced two critically loathed, but decently profitable attempts in the mid-2000s with future Captain America Chris Evans as the Human Torch. In 2015, it tried again (unsuccessfully) with Michael B. Jordan and Miles Teller. They got another chance after Disney’s $71 billion acquisition of Fox’s entertainment assets in 2019.
The “Fantastic Four’s” opening weekend results were a little less than some rival studio projections, Dergarabedian said. Nonetheless, the film is expected to carry movie theater earnings well into August.
Holdovers dominated the top 10, but one other newcomer managed to make the chart. The dark romantic comedy “Oh, Hi!” earned $1.1 million from 866 screens.
“Jurassic World Rebirth” landed in third place in its fourth weekend with $13 million, followed by “F1” with $6.2 million. The Brad Pitt racing movie also passed $500 million globally. “Smurfs” rounded out the top five with $5.4 million in its second weekend.
The box office is currently up over 12% from last year.
Top 10 movies by domestic box office
With final domestic figures being released Monday, this list factors in the estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore:
1. “The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” $118 million.
2. “Superman,” $24.9 million.
3. “Jurassic World Rebirth,” $13 million.
4. “F1: The Movie,” $6.2 million.
5. “Smurfs,” $5.4 million.
6. “I Know What You Did Last Summer,” $5.1 million.
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