It sounds like James Corden is in no rush to go and see the big screen version of Cats – even though he’s in it.
The movie has been savaged by critics and moviegoers since its release last week, which hasn’t gone unnoticed by the British star.
“I haven’t seen it but I’ve heard it’s terrible,” James said during an appearance with the Gavin & Stacey cast on Zoe Ball’s BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show.
“The reviews have been a bit harsh,” Zoe replied, to which Larry Lamb – who plays Mick Shipman in the BBC sitcom – laughed: “It’s got some brilliant reviews.”
“My mate Rhys, his wife and two or three went to see it and quite genuinely loved it. And I’m not just saying that because you’re here,” Uncle Bryn actor Rob Brydon reassured James, who rather casually answered back: “That has always been the musical Cats. I’ll catch it one day I imagine.”
It’s not going to happen, is it James?
Despite being one of the most hyped films of the year, Cats has failed to deliver – and then some, according to critics.
Reviews were overwhelmingly negative, with The Telegraph giving it zero stars, while it currently has a critics score of 19% on film review site Rotten Tomatoes.
Things weren’t looking too good after the trailer arrived in July, when we got our first look at the CGI human-cat hybrids, which were met with widespread dismay.
In our review of the film, we said: “There’s little evidence of [these redesigns] in the film itself.
“In the middle of scenes, actors’ faces appear to change positions on their cat characters’ heads, which is a particular issue when they’re in motion. And given that Cats is a dance-led musical film, there are a lot of times when the characters are moving about.”
After its initial release last Friday, an updated version of the film has quietly been released by Universal Pictures, with “some improved visual effects”.
Also starring Judi Dench, Ian McKellen, Jason Derulo, Rebel Wilson, Jennifer Hudson and Taylor Swift, Tom Hooper’s take on Andrew Lloyd Webber’s 1981 stage production follows a bunch of felines who compete to be the one who ascends to the Heaviside Layer and come back to a new life.