On Wednesday, a video surfaced on TMZ showing a trainer forcing a German Shepherd into turbulent waters on the set of the film A Dog’s Purpose. The video has since gone viral and enraged everyone including People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) who has since called for a boycott of the film.
In the viral video, the dog clawed at the pool’s edge and desperately tried to run away while an animal trainer tried to force the animal into the rushing water. Off-camera, someone even had the audacity to laugh at the dog’s struggle. “You just got to throw him in,” the person said.
TMZ reported that the scene was shot in Winnipeg, Canada, in November 2015.
Once the video was made public, PETA asked dog lovers to boycott the film “to send the message that dogs and other animals should be treated humanely, not as movie props.” After reviewing the footage, Lisa Lange, PETA’s senior vice president, added, “This movie is directed towards those who love dogs and, clearly, this is not a dog’s purpose.”
The animal-rights group is targeting a specific animal supplier: Birds & Animals Unlimited.
The Steven Speilberg-founded Amblin Entertainment and Universal Pictures issued a new joint statement Thursday evening. “Because Amblin’s review into the edited video released yesterday is still ongoing, distributor Universal Pictures has decided it is in the best interest of A Dog’s Purpose to cancel this weekend’s premiere and press junket. Amblin and Universal do not want anything to overshadow this film that celebrates the relationship between animals and humans,” the statement read.
“Since the emergence of the footage, Amblin has engaged with many associated with the production of the film, including safety personnel, trainers and stunt coordinators as part of their in-depth review. While we are all disheartened by the appearance of an animal in distress, everyone has assured us that Hercules the German Shepherd was not harmed throughout the film-making.”
“We continue to support this film, are incredibly proud of it and will release it for audiences nationwide next Friday.”
Based on W. Bruce Cameron’s bestselling novel of the same, the movie tells the story of a dog who realizes the meaning of life after being re-incarnated, which brings him into the lives of many owners. The movie stars Pooch Hall, Peggy Lipton, Britt Robertson and Dennis Quaid.
Josh Gad, who voices a dog in the film, issued his own statement via Twitter Wednesday.
— Josh Gad (@joshgad) January 19, 2017
The film’s director, Lasse Hallström, was also appalled by the incident.
“I did not witness these actions. We were all committed to providing a loving and safe environment for all the animals in the film.” he tweeted.
I have been promised that a thorough investigation into this situation is underway and that any wrongdoing will be reported and punished.
— lasse hallstrom (@HallstromLasse) January 19, 2017
The American Humane Association, which monitored the action on set, was also “disturbed” after reviewing the footage. “When the dog showed signs of resistance to jumping in the water, the scene should have been stopped,” the organization told E! News in a statement. “We are placing the safety representative who was on the set on administrative leave immediately and are bringing in an independent third party to conduct an investigation into this matter.”
Gavin Polone, who produced the film, is a longtime animal rights activist. Speaking to Deadline, he too was “horrified” by the video. “The first thing I asked was, ‘Is the dog OK?’ He’s fine. But if I had seen that, I would have stopped it in a minute. People have to be held responsible for this. It was someone’s job to watch out for this kind of thing. Why didn’t they?”
Polone, who estimated he was on the first unit about 70 percent of the time, added that he “never saw, in any way, the animal handlers stressing out the animal. But I wasn’t there for the second unit. If I had been, I would have stopped it. All I can say is that I hope that bringing this out leads to better treatment of animals. I know the studio is outraged and investigating this.”
A Dog’s Purpose hits cinemas next week. But we’re with PETA on this one and we don’t think we’ll be getting over this horrible mistreatment of Hercules anytime soon.
