RIP Leo
Leo the Cat who played ‘Church’ in the 2019 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary has died, just week’s after the film’s premiere.
Leo was one of four cats who portrayed ‘Church’ and was adopted by his trainer, Kirk Jarett, after working with the cat on set. Jarett created an Instagram account for Leo which proved popular with fans of the film and cat lovers around the world.
Posting on the site earlier today, Jarett wrote: “It is with deep sadness that we tell you that Leo has passed away. He will be forever missed by his human and fur family. May his star always shine bright!”
Leo the Cat was remembered by his trainer on Instagram
Speaking to the AV Club earlier this year about Leo and his role in Pet Sematary, Jarett said: “Leo is a confident sit-stay cat. His role is as the undead Church; that was his whole purpose, to be the poster child. The cat you see all across the different platforms, and in the trailer, almost any time he’s in in the undead makeup—that was Leo.”
You can see some of the tributes to Leo here:
One of the pet sematary cats passed away ? pic.twitter.com/MdNmpKfhHO
— #66 the chopper (@BUNNYH00D) May 30, 2019
the cat from PET SEMATARY died and i am fucking devastated. pic.twitter.com/9vGjvgS6uQ
— lindsey romain (@lindseyromain) May 30, 2019
Oh no, such sad news. https://t.co/5LfThyTGTx
— Lorenzo The Cat (@LorenzoTheCat) May 30, 2019
Ah man don’t tell me Leo aka Church the biggest star of Pet Sematary(2019) has died ? I loved that Cat pic.twitter.com/vn3fLw7OlM
— T?M (@TomCash01) May 30, 2019
Leo the cat from Pet Sematary died and I think this is the hardest celebrity death I ever had to deal with, tbh. ? pic.twitter.com/7vkrFdtah1
— Lena (@namjoonjimin) May 30, 2019
The cat who played Church in the new Pet Sematary remake has passed away and goddamnit he was a good boy who wore a tie.
Rip sweet baby
— Cronenbergian Cheru (@IridescentSlime) May 30, 2019
Awww… RIP Leo, one of the cats who played Church in PET SEMATARY (2019) ?? pic.twitter.com/K0K6k89DYh
— Alyssa Vidales ☕️ (@instalyssa) May 30, 2019
Reviewing Pet Sematary in March, NME wrote: “The twist in this new adaptation has been widely reported already. In case you’ve missed it, we won’t repeat is here. And yet the most surprising thing about the new movie – directed by Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer and written by Jeff Buhl – is the tonal inversion it applies to the entire premise of King’s story.
“It’s a horror movie, yes, in that there are things that make you jump, things that are unsettling to look at, and ultimately, it’s about things being buried in the ground that then come back to life and do horrible things. And sometimes it’s very effective at being so. But 2019’s Pet Sematary is much closer to being a black comedy than it is a horror movie.”
According to Deadline, Hulu acquired the rights to develop a pilot of the novel with Lego and Batman Movie creator Seth Grahame-Smith being brought in to write the opening episode and work as the series show runner. He will produce the series alongside David Katzenberg, Bill Haber, Roy Lee and Jon Berg.
Speaking to Deadline, Grahame-Smith said: “I am so excited to be working in the world of Stephen King with with Hulu, which has such a terrific track record with Stephen King adaptations.
“The goal for this series is to feel unlike any Stephen King adaptation before, with this rich underlying source material, and the only true fantasy book he wrote that has kings and swords and princesses. We will honour the spirit of the book and the legacy.”
