Will Smith was left frustrated when his wife Jada Pinkett Smith adopted a deaf cat from China.

The couple temporarily relocated to the Asian country in 2010 to work on a remake of The Karate Kid with their son Jaden in a starring role, and during this time, animal lover Jada grew close to a feline that frequently visited the film set.

In an interview with comedienne Ellen DeGeneres on her U.S. talk show on Tuesday (24Feb15), Will recalled, "She brought a deaf cat back from China - she didn't know it was deaf at the time.

"We were doing The Karate Kid and it had been around the set all day and she said, 'Babe...' I said, 'Babe. Listen, that's a communist cat. It's not gonna function in a capitalist society!"

Will, who says they already have "an ark" of animals in their sprawling California property, continued, "She brings this cat back home... We found out the hard way - the cat is sitting up on the table going, 'Meow! Meow! Meow!' I was like, 'Babe, that cat's mentally disturbed.'

"We take the cat to the doctor and he's like, 'Oh no - he's deaf.' And I'm like (to Jada), 'You brought a deaf cat back from China?'"

The Hollywood couple decided to send the cat to a local school for the deaf and blind as a pet for the children.