How much of Alfie [the cat] was Chip [Vaughn’s family cat] and how much did Chip refuse to do and leave to the CG team? Also, did Chip make any unreasonable contractual demands knowing that he could possibly get away with it since you’re his owner?
Possibly. So as we know, well, Chip’s become a much bigger deal than I would’ve ever imagined, but Chip is my daughter’s cat. So the only demands were my daughter’s demands, which was candy. So she got more candy each week, specifically a crunchy bar. And I’m a dog person with a capital D, right? So it was very strange. And the cat is definitely my daughter’s cat and I was always like, “Hey Chip, how are you doing?” That was enough for me. And then Chip and I bonded making this movie and he was — I mean, look, I’m not allowed to throw cats off roofs. I probably would if I could because it’s a cat, but I’d say 95% of the movie really is Chip. I think because he was the family cat, he was really relaxed, so I could put him here and he wouldn’t have the need just to run off or stare.
The problem [with] animal trainers, you have the damn animal and it just looks at the bloody trainer. So the eyeline’s always wrong. And I’d say, “I need dogs and I need it to look at that, not look this way, waiting for the treat.” And Bryce is brilliant with cats, so they bonded and I even gave Bryce a cat as a wrap present. The cousin of Chip’s now lives with Bryce.
“Argylle” opens in theaters on Friday, February 2.
