Actress Zooey Deschanel and HGTV star Jonathan Scott seem to see eye-to-eye on just about everything, from taking their time planning a wedding to how to decorate their gorgeous homes. But for years, the “Elf” star could not get Scott to agree on adding a cat to their family, she told fellow feline lover Jennifer Hudson during an appearance on her talk show that aired on December 11, 2025.
“He wasn’t open to it at first,” Deschanel admitted, sharing photos of the three kitties they now have at home. “It did take a little convincing. And then he was like, ‘Alright.’ Actually, it took, kind of, years.”
Jonathan Scott Now ‘Loves’ Their Cats, Zooey Deschanel Says — Especially a Kitty Named Pickle
When Hudson expressed surprise that it took years for Deschanel to convince Scott to adopt a cat, the actress — who stars in the new Christmas movie “Merv” — explained, “Well, yeah, I had to, like, be like, ‘Do you think about, we could get a cat one day?’ And he’s like, ‘Maybe.'”
“And then, eventually I got him on board,” Deschanel said,” and now he loves them. They are so sweet! Cats, like, get a bad rap. I don’t know why, but like, once you know them, you love them.”
Chris Haston/Warner Bros.Hudson then made a rare comment about her own boyfriend, rapper and actor Common, telling Deschanel she “got him into cats, and now he thinks he’s a cat specialist.”
Deschanel then said that similarly, Scott now considers himself a bit of a cat whisperer, noting, “Once he won over the little one — Pickle didn’t like him for a really long time ’cause she’s very small and he’s very tall. Now she finally comes over for pets. He’s very proud of that. Very proud!”
Jonathan Scott Built a Luxury Catio for His & Zooey Deschanel’s Cats
Scott and Deschanel already had a pretty full household, raising two kids, Charlie and Elsie, whom she shares with her ex-husband, Jacob Pechenik. But in February, Scott posted a social media video of himself with their three cats, writing in his caption, “Our family recently grew 😻”
In the video, with footage of him snuggling and playing with their three kitties. He introduced Poppy as “the precocious one,” Pickle as the “cute and cautious one,” and Dove as “the queen — and she knows it.”
“It might be happening,” he said in the video. “I might be becoming a cat guy!”
In a September post, the “Celebrity IOU” star wrote, “These cats have me wrapped so tightly around their little paws that I built them a catio #truestory.” He even showed how they built it in a YouTube video, as seen above, and adorably admitted he thinks Deschanel loves the cats “more than me.”
