Halle Berry took her role in ‘Catwoman’ very seriously by living like a cat around the clock.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Berry explained that she prepared for the role by dedicating months to learning capoeira. She also spent her days acting like a cat to truly understand how cats move and think:
“They gave me a cat early on because I didn’t have one. His name was Playdough. I watched, studied, and learned how cats think. I didn’t have the responsibility of children and family; I was just a woman alone with a lot of idle time to focus on this. I was a full-on cat, all the time. I’d crawl around my house, trying to jump on my counters, thinking, ‘If I were a cat, how would I get up there?’ I was in it 24/7.”
EW brought Berry, the director Pitof, producer Denise Di Novi, writer John Brancato, and other stars together in honor of the film’s 20th anniversary. They discussed how the movie, once seen as a failure, is now a cult favorite.
‘Catwoman’ Made Her a Cat Person
Berry was a dog person, but playing Catwoman made her fall in love with cats. She even rescued four kittens from her yard just recently:
“I just rescued four kitties I found in my yard three weeks ago. I’m a Catwoman through and through because of that experience and those relationships. That experience changed me.”
Berry shared that the idea for the movie came to her while she was working on another film. She was excited about the opportunity to reinvent Catwoman and bring something new to the character:
“‘Catwoman’ came on my radar while I made ‘Die Another Day’ in 2002, which is when I was first asked. I was wildly excited. The pitch wasn’t really a story; it was just the idea of reinventing Catwoman. The studio was a big part of that; the idea was to not do what’s been done over and over but to bring something different.”
‘Catwoman’ wasn’t well-received when it was first released. Critics and DC Comics fans were disappointed with its lack of connection to Batman and the comics, its unusual tone, fast editing, and over-the-top performances. Berry faced a lot of criticism for her role at the time.
The movie found new popularity in recent years with younger viewers on streaming platforms. It now has an average rating of 4.5 out of 5 from over 4,100 user ratings on Amazon Prime Video despite its 8% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
