‘Cat Burglar’: New Featurette Shows Goes into the Interactive Animation’s Creation!! Check It Out!!

Since signing a multi-million dollar deal with Netflix, satirical funnyman Charlie Brooker has dropped both Death to 2020 and 2021 — presumably, a 2022 version is forthcoming at the end of the year. Now, the streamer is releasing another project with the Black Mirror show runner, further to the interactive one-off special of the dystopian anthology series, Bandersnatch. Cat Burglar, like the aforementioned Black Mirror spin-off, is an animated adventure with a twist: the viewer has to answer trivia-like questions at intervals, each impacting the luck of protagonist Rowdy Cat in a hilariously different way.

Exclusive to Collider, Cat Burglar has revealed a behind-the-scenes featurette on the show, which reveals just how Brooker and Co. made the series — with special appearances from the animated stars.

Stylised like a ’50s news clip — the pre-TV sort that you might expect to see before a movie in a theater — the featurette offers a compelling audience with the “stars of the creators of the show,” including Brooker, executive producer Annabel Jones, animator Mike Hollingsworth, and both Rowdy Cat and rival Peanut the Security Pup. “Well I’ve always been a fan of classic animation, especially the work of director Tex Avery,” says Brooker of the legendary Warners animator, who famously created Bugs Bunny. “So broadly speaking, if you the viewer successfully answer questions, then Rowdy Cat is successful in his ongoing quest to infiltrate the museum and steal a valuable painting,” explains Brooker of the concept.

While Peanut explains to the viewer just how friendly he is with Rowdy Cat off-set, the latter — a “rascal,” as Peanut jovially describes him — steals a wad of cash from his wallet, replacing the stack of green with a loaded mousetrap. “Well because of all the variables in cat burglary, each level has several possible set-ups,” explains Hollingsworth. “And depending on whether you answer correctly or incorrectly, you get a favorable or unfavorable result for Rowdy.” That’s right, folks: just how much pain and/or misery Rowdy has to endure is on you. You better get those answers right!

Cat Burglar comes to Netflix globally on February 22nd. Watch the featurette below and further down the page is the synopsis.

Here’s the official synopsis for Cat Burglar:

“Classic cartoon craziness meets interactive trivia quiz in Cat Burglar. This edgy, over-the-top, interactive, Tex Avery-inspired cartoon is from the creators of Black Mirror. By answering witty trivia questions, viewers must help Rowdy Cat get one over on Peanut the Security Pup and break into a museum to steal some prized paintings. With an average runtime of fifteen minutes, and over an hour and a half of animation to explore, viewers can play Cat Burglar multiple times and unlock previously unseen sequences of Rowdy trying to outsmart Peanut.”

via Collider