After 30 years, Hocus Pocus 2 is finally almost here, but as excited as we are to see the Sanderson sisters storm Salem once again, the sad truth is that there’s one fan-favorite from the original 1993 movie who won’t feature in the follow-up. It’s Thackery Binx, the beloved talking cat who helped Max, Dani, and Allison foil Winifred and co. the first time around.
While it’s only right that Binx’s heavenly happy ending isn’t undone for the sequel, Hocus Pocus-heads might be suffering from talking cat withdrawal after his absence from the new movie. So now is the perfect time to take a look at the other great cats who can hold a conversation across movies and TV, from some of the most iconic to those who deserve more acclaim.
Note: this list is specifically looking at talking cats, not other talking members of the feline family. Likewise, talking cats who exist in worlds where all animals talk, so most animated movies, are not to be counted. Like Binx, the following communicative kitty cats are peculiar in their ability to speak.
Salem Saberhagen (Sabrina the Teenage Witch)
The 1990s gave us two iconic talking black cats who hang around with witches. Melissa Joan Hart’s character might’ve had her name in the title, but everyone knows the real star of Sabrina the Teenage Witch was her pet, Salem. What’s less well remembered is that Salem was actually originally a witch himself who was transformed into a cat as punishment for trying to take over the world. Chilling Adventures of Sabrina really dropped the ball by not bringing back Nick Bakay to reprise his role.
Luna (Sailor Moon)
Luna is the archetypal adorable anime cat, most recognizable by the moon mark on her forehead. She’s also a key character in the Sailor Moon saga, being the first one to tell Usagi about her great destiny to become one of the Sailor Guardians. Luna continues to be a mentor and source of advice to Usagi and the rest of the Guardians, with her outer-space origins coming out as the series continues. She even gains the ability to transform into a human in later entries in the franchise.
Cheshire Cat (Alice in Wonderland)
The animated Cheshire Cat from the original Disney film is a little bit kooky, but Tim Burton transformed the character into proper nightmare fuel for his 2010 live-action remake. As voiced by Stephen Fry, Cheshire’s signature grin is rendered eerie by stylized CGI. Plus, his disregard for others’ welfare — when the Mad Hatter is to be sentenced to death, he only asks if he can inherit his hat — emphasizes his nature as a truly chaotic neutral character.
The Cat (Coraline)
An underrated figure in the talking cats pantheon here. When Coraline Jones travels from the regular world to the Other Mother’s realm, her cat follows her, and in this reality he can speak — with the silky tones of Keith David, no less. With his enigmatic comments and ethereal nature, The Cat is almost like a more heroic and helpful counterpart to the Cheshire Cat, as his advice aids Coraline in her defeat of the monstrous Other Mother.
Cat in the Hat (The Cat in the Hat)
Whether you view it as one of the worst films ever made or a nostalgic favorite you grew up with, you have to admit that The Cat in the Hat is one of the most memorable talking cat movies of all time, thanks to the unforgettable image of Mike Myers in freakish feline prosthetics doing a knock-off impression of Bert Lahr from The Wizard of Oz. There’s a reason the 2005 box office bomb, with its bizarrely adult sense of humor, is the last live-action Dr. Seuss adaptation to date.
The ‘Dream of a Thousand Cats’ cats (The Sandman)
Netflix’s The Sandman just gave us the latest entry in the talking cats genre thanks to the dark and moving animated segment of its bonus episode, titled “Dream of a Thousand Cats”, which reveals that the world was originally dominated by giant cats until humanity dreamed our world into existence. Now catkind, led by The Prophet (Sandra Oh), is attempting to wish the old order back. Also, a shout-out must go to Tom Sturridge’s Dream of the Endless in catform for making us feel some confusing things.
Cat (Red Dwarf)
Cat might look like a human only with a pair of fangs, but here’s the twist — they are actually the hyper-evolved descendant of a regular domestic cat. In classic British sci-fi comedy Red Dwarf, Lister goes into suspended animation on board the titular ship and, when he awakens three million years later, he encounters Cat, the extremely vain and self-centered feline being with a lineage going back to Lister’s pregnant pet cat, who didn’t go into suspended animation with him.
Meowth (Pokémon)
All right, yes, Meowth is a Pokémon not a regular cat, but this list still would’ve been complete without him. The longest-serving member of Team Rocket has gone from a comic relief character to someone with a unique place in the Pokémon mythos, thanks to his status as the only Pokémon to be able to speak more than his name — an ability which has a surprisingly tragic origin. Meowth was in love with another one of his kind so taught himself to speak to impress her, but instead she only saw him as a freak. Meowth, that’s not right.
Keanu (Keanu)
Before he became the king of elevated horror movies, Jordan Peele made his feature film debut, alongside his frequent collaborator and best pal Keegan-Michael Key, with wacky 2016 action-comedy Keanu. The film sees the pair play a hapless duo who bravely/stupidly take on some gangsters who have kidnapped their newly adopted kitten Keanu, as voiced by – yeah, you guessed it — Keanu Reeves. Come for the appeal of Key and Peele and stay for the ridiculously cute kitten.
Mr. Whiskers (The Voices)
Ryan Reynolds’ voiceover roles in underrated black comedy The Voices couldn’t be further away from his turn as the adorable Detective Pikachu. The Deadpool star is on triple duty in this 2014 effort which tells the story of Jerry, a schizophrenic man whose condition causes him to hallucinate his pets talking to him — Bosco the dog, who generally acts as the angel on his shoulder, and Mr. Whiskers, his cat who encourages his darker impulses. And considering the dark things Jerry gets up to this film, Mr. Whisker is one bad kitty.
