Twenty-three years ago, Mike Myers pulled on the striped hat and the studio took a bath. The 2003 live-action “The Cat in the Hat” grossed $134 million worldwide against a budget of $109 million, and it was followed by a ban on live-action Dr. Seuss movies. That ghost walks into theaters with the new animated version on November 6.
Warner Bros. could use a friendly turn. Its 2025 was a long winning streak, from “Sinners” to “Superman.” This year has gone the other way. Apart from “Wuthering Heights” and “Evil Dead Rise,” it has been flop after disappointment, among them “The Bride!,” “Supergirl,” “The End of Oak Street” and “Digger.” Digger, by one account, is set to lose a lot of money.
A cat with a day job
This is the first Dr. Seuss animated movie at the studio and only the second feature-length take on the 1957 book. Erica Rivinoja and Alessandro Carloni wrote and directed. Bill Hader voices the Cat, a tall, anthropomorphic agent at the Institute for the Institution of Imagination and Inspiration, LLC. His boss is fed up. His latest assignment: cheer up Gabby and Sebastian, two siblings sulking over a move to a new town. Mess up again and he could lose the magical hat.
The numbers to watch
Box Office Theory has the film opening to between $25 million and $35 million. That is the soft end for a family animation, but the lane is clear. Nothing else aimed at kids arrives until Disney’s “Hexed” at Thanksgiving, which gives the Cat room to run.
The range has two useful markers. “GOAT” opened to $27 million and finished at $195 million worldwide. “The Wild Robot” surprised with a $35 million debut after strong reviews and went on to $334 million. Budget is a guess, but Warner Bros. Pictures Animation’s history points to something between $70 million and $90 million.
Then there is Godzilla. “Godzilla Minus Zero” opens the same weekend with the same projection, $25 million to $35 million, so the top spot in North America looks like a coin toss. Its predecessor, 2023’s “Godzilla Minus One,” is the highest-grossing Japanese Godzilla film ever and won the franchise its first Oscar. The two should split audiences more than they fight over them, since one is for kids and the other is not.
A win would help. “Clayface” opened at number one with $24 million and helped steady James Gunn’s DC Universe. A second chart-topper in a row would be a decent way to close out a rough year.
Sources
- The Cat in the Hat (2026 film)
- ‘The Cat in the Hat’ Is Back: How the Seuss Icon’s First Animated Feature Will Kick Off a New Era
- The Cat In The Hat Could Get Warner Bros. Back On Track At The Box Office – SlashFilm
- Warner Bros. Pictures Animation and Amazon Ads Invite Audiences to Play Inside the World of The Cat in the Hat Ahead of Film's Premiere
- The Cat in the Hat giveaway – get passes for 11/2 screening
- Antonio Banderas' 'The Mummy' Replacement Is Officially Back on Free Streaming
Photo: jay huang / Unsplash (Unsplash License)
