Ahead of the sequel to a hit Chinese animated film featuring a beloved stray cat called Luo Xiaohei, the creator has been slammed for abandoning the animal that inspired the feline character.
Zhang Ping, 39, an artist known by his pen name MTJJ, rose to fame in the 2010s as one of the country’s most successful cartoonists, thanks to his animated version of the cat.
The cartoon kitty, with its huge round eyes and pointed ears, was modelled after a stray black cat Zhang adopted.
Starting in 2011, the cat became the protagonist of an animated television series and a sensation on mainland social media.
In 2019, it starred in a feature-length film that earned 315 million yuan (US$43 million) at the box office.
The success of the film led many to hail Zhang as a key figure in the revival of Chinese anime.
The film tells the story of Luo Xiaohei, whose home was destroyed leaving him to wander the streets alone. The cat encounters a human and the duo embark on a fantastic adventure together.
The film’s sequel was originally scheduled for release next year.
However, Zhang recently sparked outrage after it was discovered in an online interview he had abandoned the real-life animal that had inspired his successful animated character.
In an interview, he revealed he had “given away” the cat six months after adoption, because it was “hard to domesticate”.
“It remained wild and untrainable, so I had to let it go,” a smiling Zhang said.
“Is it doing well in another home?” the host asked.
“It’s not in another home. I released it into the wild,” Zhang replied.
He said he had created Luo Xiaohei to “commemorate” the cat after he had “returned” it to the streets.
Online observers highlighted the irony as the theme song and promotional posters of the film include the chorus, “You’ll never have to roam the streets again.”
“No more roaming? How ironic!” one person said.
Others pointed out that stray cats rarely survive after being abandoned.
“He made a fortune from the cat that probably died in winter, how ridiculous,” said another person.
“If you did not want to keep it, even secretly dropping it off at a pet hospital would have been better than abandoning it in the wild,” wrote a third.
Although the interview was released in 2019, it only recently triggered a furious reaction, probably because of his recent outspoken views.
Zhang accused the developers of a video game of sexism, which led gaming fans to scrutinise his past.
The five-year-old interview was then shared widely on social media, with the related hashtag attracting 27 million views on Weibo.
Many fans are calling for a boycott of the coming film sequel, which is currently in production.
