The Cat in The Hat (film) - Production

Production

DreamWorks acquired rights to the original book in 1997. However, production did not originally start until after the 2000 Christmas/Comedy film How the Grinch Stole Christmas's, based on another Dr. Seuss book of the same name, commercial success. Brian Grazer, who was the producer of How the Grinch Stole Christmas, stated, "Because we grew up with these books, and because they have such universal themes and the illustrations ignite such fantasy in your mind as a child — the aggregation of all those feelings — it leaves an indelible, positive memory. And so when I realized I had a chance to convert first The Grinch and then, The Cat in the Hat, into movies, I was willing to do anything to bring them to the screen." Grazer contacted Bo Welch over the phone with the offer to direct the film, and he accepted.

When production began, songs written by Randy Newman were dropped because they were deemed inferior. Although Welch and a publicist for Myers denied it, several people said Myers had considerable input into the film's directing, telling some of the cast (the film co-stars Alec Baldwin and Kelly Preston) how to perform their scenes.

Tim Allen was originally planned to play the role of the Cat. The script would be originally based on a story conceived by Allen, who admitted that as a child he was afraid of Seuss' "mischievous feline" babysitter. Allen stated, "My dream is to give it the edge that scared me." However, producers did not commission a screenplay until late February 2001, when Alec Berg, Jeff Schaffer, and Dave Mandel (who were also the writers of Seinfeld) were hired to write the script (replacing the original draft of the film that was written a few years before), so there was no way the film would be ready to shoot before the deadline. Allen was also committed to shooting Disney's The Santa Clause 2, which was also delayed because Allen wanted a script rewrite. Due to a scheduling conflict with The Santa Clause 2, he dropped out his role.

In March 2002, the role of the Cat was given to Mike Myers, even though he had an argument with Grazer about starring in a cancelled Saturday Night Live skit named Dieter. Myers stated in an interview that he was a long-time fan of the original Dr. Seuss book, and that it was the first book he ever read.

Makeup for the character was designed by Steve Johnson. The Cat costume was made of angora and human hair and was fitted with a cooling system. To keep Myers cool during the outdoor shoots, a portable air conditioner was available that connected a hose to the suit between shots. The tail and ears were battery operated.

The Fish was considered somewhat of a unique character for Rhythm & Hues (responsible for some of the effects and animation in such films as Cats & Dogs, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King and Scooby-Doo), in that the character had no shoulders, hips or legs, so all of the physical performance had to emit from the eyes, head and fin motion. Sean Hayes, who provided the voice for the Fish, found the role significantly different from his usual on-camera jobs; he did not know how the final animation would look, and all of his work took place alone in a sound booth.

Before filming began, giant props for the film were stolen from the set. Local police found the props vandalised in a mall car park in Pomona, California. The props were covered with graffiti. No arrests had been made, and filming was to start the next week. The film was mainly shot in California from October 2002 until January 2003.

The neighborhood and the town centre was filmed in a rural valley near Simi Valley, where 24 houses (each 26-feet square and 52-feet tall) were constructed. The downtown area outdoor shots were filmed along a Pomona street where a number of antique and gift shops are located. The community decided not to redecorate after filming ended, so the surreal paint scheme and some of the signage could still be seen as it appears in the film. Because of so much smog in the area, the sky had to be digitally replaced with the cartoon-like sky and colours of the background had to be digitally fixed.