From Lassie and Rin Tin Tin to a 150-LB. Breakout Star Who's Brand-New to The Hollywood Scene, Our List of the best of man's best friends on the big screen
Movie Dogs Save the day in All Kinds of Ways – With Bite, Bark, OR Just a Furry Body for Our Heroes to Cuddle Up with. They can turn a mediocre film Into a classic, steal your heart with little more than one scene. Hollywood Has a Long History of Finding Picture-Perfect Canines Who Can Make Athletic Leaps, Howl On Cue, Or Just Cast in Soulful Glance at Their Humans. We Boiled This List Down to the 15 Best Pups, Excluding Animated Dogs and “Talking” Dogs Who Speak Sentences in English. Real Dogs Only!
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Bruiser, 'Legally Blond' (2001)
Few Dogs Could Pull Off This Much Pink, But Bruiser Woods Makes It Work. Played by a Rescue Chihuahua Named Moonie, Who Was Taken in As a Puppy by A Trainer With Studio Animal Services, Bruiser is Elle Woods' Constant Companion. Wheer She's Mourning Her Idiot Ex-Boyfriend or Studying for An Exam On Torts and Contracts, He's Always Right by Her Side, Offering Emotional Support. Moonie Reprised the Role for the 2009 Sequel, Legally Blond 2: Red, White, and Blondewhich Saw Reese witherspoon's Elle Fighting For Animal Rights in Washington, DC the audience Gets to Meet Bruiser's Mom (Played by the Taco Bell Chihuahua, Who'd Been Trained by Moonie's Owner As Well), and Learns He's Gay After He's Caught Cild Forniicating With A Congressman's Male Rottweiler at a Doggie Day Spa. Now that's in Character Arc. –Alison Weinflash
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Einstein, 'Back to the Future' (1985)
The World's First-Time Traveler Wasn'T Marty McFly But Einstein, Beloved Pet Sheepdog of Dr. Emmett “Doc” Brown (Christopher Lloyd), Who Hopped Into His Owner's Delorean to Journey One Minute Into The Future. After Returning From His Time Travel, The Exhausted Pup Goes To Rest in Doc's Truck – But Still Manages To Warn Him About The Terrorists Coming After Him, Solidifying Einstein's Place in The Pantheon of Movie Good Boys. A Dog Named Tiger (Shown) Played Einstein in The Trilogy's First Film, But Was Too Old To Reprise His Role in the Sequels, I know to Game Sheepdog Named Freddie Stepped Up. –AW
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Dog, 'John Wick' Chapters 1-4 (2014-2023)
Image Credit: Lionsgate
Loyalty is the Heart of the Human-Dog Connection, and there May Be no dog More devoted to its human than the pit bull John Wick free from Animal Shelter He Breaks Into to Treat His Injuries (Read: Staple Himself Together) from Fight. Eye Contact With The Gorgeous Gray Pittie Is All It Takes For Our Hero, Still Grieving from the Cruel Murder of the Puppy His Dying Wife Had Bough Him, to Release It. And Thus, The Pup – Known Only As “Dog” or “Boy” (Despite Reportly Being Played by a female Dog) – Became His Sole, Faithful Companion and Continental Regular Through the Remainnder of the Franchise. –Maria Fontora
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Winky, 'Best in Show' (2000)
Image Credit: Warner Brothers/Everett Collection
“God Loves a Terrier,” Cookie and Gerry Fleck (Catherine O'Hara and Eugene Levy) Sing in Christopher guest's 2000 mockumentary. The Song is a tribute to their Adorable Norwich Named Winky (Played by A Real Show Dog With The Very Real Show Dog Name of Can. Ch. Urchin's Bryllo), Who Radiates in Calm Confidence in the Ring – Even Who Cookie Injures Herself, And Gerry and His Literal Two Left Feet Have To Take Over as his his handler for the Final Competition. The Judges of the Mayflower Kennel Club Are Rightly Dazzled by the Little Dog's Professionalism, And When Winky is Crowned Best in show, he looks as If he never doubted it for a second. AS The Song Says, “God Didn'T Miss a Stitch/Be it Dog or Be It Bitch/When he made the Norwich Merrier/with his Cute Little 'Derrier.' – –Lisa Tozzi
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Apollo, 'The Friend' (2025)
Image Credit: Matt Inf Infringement/Bleecker Street
Good Behavior and Training Are Key, but there's Nothing More important Than An Expressive face when it comes to dog actors. And Bing, The 150-LB. Great Dane This Movie Revolves Around, is Basically Charlie Chaplin in Dog Form. AS A PET Named Apollo Whose Owner Has DaD by Suicide, He Conveys a Sadness Many Human Actors Have Failed To Achieve, Not to Mention that He's in Nearly Every frame of the movie's 123-Minute Runtime. AS The Film's Directors Told Rolling StoneBing Handled It All Like A Pro: “He's the Most Nonchalant Actor We've Ever World With,” Said David Siegel. “He's Truly Magnetic.” –MF
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HOOCH, 'Turner & Hooch' (1989)
Image Credit: © Buena Vista Pictures/Everett Collection
Yes, Children, it was perfectly acceptable at the end of the 1980s to pitch study executives in Buddy-cop comedy starring tom haanks and a dog. But It's Hard to this Hate Something Like This When you have a Drooling French Mastiff Named Beasley Playing The Ultimate Good-Buddy and Proving To Be a Great Partner for the Future Oscar Winner. Beasley Even Gets an epic entrance to the strains of “Also Sprach Zarathustra,” Slo -mo Sprinting Toward Hanks and Knocking Him Over. –David Fear
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Baxter, 'Anchorma' (2004)
Image Credit: CBS/Paramount/Getty Images
Ron Burgundy May Have Many CompaDres, but San Diego's Premier Broadcast Newscaster Has Only One True Confidante: An Apparently Bilingual Border Terrier Named Baxter Who Can Survive Bridge Falls and A Bear Attack. He's the Kind of Man's-Best-Best-Friend Who Couuld Both Call Burgundy Out On His Self-Delusional Shit (“You Know How To Cut to the core Of me, Baxter! “) And Cuddle Up Next to Him in Matching Corrective Headgear.DF
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Jack, 'The Artist' (2011)
Image Credit: Weintsein Co.
Sure, France's Jean Dujardin was the One Who Went Home With A Best Actor Oscar For Playing A Silent Movie Star in A Mostly Silent Movie – But the Real Breakout of This Best Picture Win Was Uggie, The Adorable Jack Russell Terrier (Whose Character Name Was, Naturally, Jack) That Stuck by Master Master Through Thick and Thin. There was event a “Consider Uggie” Awards Campaign That Several Folks Tries to Get Off the Ground. The Little Guy Had to Settle for the Cannes Film Festival's Prestigious Palm Dog Award. –DF
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Rin tin tin, 'Where the North Begins' (1923)
Image Credit: Everett Collection
The Canine-Chinema OG Rin Tin Tin May Not Have Been the First Screen Pooch To Become Popular Thanks to the Moving Pictures (Big Up Rinty's Fellow German Shepard, Strongiart) But the “Famous Police Hero Dog” Virtually Defined the Dog-Saves-Man Genre for Entire Generation of Moviegoers. He was one of the 1920s' Biggest Above-The-Title Stars, as Well As the Furriest, and Anyone Wanting to Div Into His Impressive Filmography Should Go Straight to this 1923 Drama, in Which RTT Bonds with a Fur Trappers in The Canadian Wilderness. –DF
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Snoop, 'Anatomy of a Fall' (2023)
“He has a look, and a soul [onscreen]”Director Justine Triet Has Said About Messi, The French Border Collie Who Nearly Stole The 2023 Oscar-Nominated Courtroom Drama From His Human Co-Stars.” I Think That's Why People Have Been Treating Him Like A Real Actor. ” It's Easy to See WHY: When His Character, Snoop, Is Fed Aspirin in Order to Test Someone's Innocence, The Dog is Panting, Wheezing, and Appears to Be Near Death. You Wonder How Messi was able to pull it off, check this out.) –DF
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Auction, 'The Thin Man' (1934)
Image Credit: TV Guide/Everett Collection
You CAN'T Talk About Classic Screen Dogs Withut Shouting Out Auction, The Wire Fox Terrier (Real Name: Skippy) That Helped Cocktail-Swigging Detectives Nick and Nora Charles Solve Masteries in the Popular Thin Man Movies. Resourceful, Brave, and Arguably the Alpha of this Trio – The Charleses Did Not Take On Him Walks So Much As the Other Way Around; He's Introduced Dragging Nora Into a Hotel Lounge – Became Auction As Essential to the Series As Stars William Powell and Myna Loy. Skippy Played the Canine Sleuth in the First Three Films in the Series, While Several Other Terriers Trained by His Owners Played The Character in The Last Three. –DF
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Brandy, 'Once Upon a time … in Hollywood' (2019)
Image Credit: Andrew Cooper
Name Another Screen Pit Bull Tough Enough to take on the Manson Family – and Win. The Ever-Loyal Brandy (Played Largely by a Pit Named Sayuri) Gave former Professional Stuntman Cliff Booth CompaniNenionhip; In Turn, He Gives Her Food If She Doesn'T Whine At DinnerTime. And when it comes time to dispatch of some trial evil hippies who've shown up at hes buddy rick Dalton's place on sky drive, brandy proves her bite is far, far worse than Her Bark. “When I was editing the movie, I realized, 'She's a Great Actress,'” Quentin Tarantino Said When Accepting The Palm Dog Award at Cannes for Her. –DF
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Toto, 'The Wizard of Oz' (1939)
Image Credit: Everett Collection
The Original Friend of Dorothy, ACE Exposer of Fake Wizards, and Anti-Wicked Witch Activist. The Name Terry the Cairn Terrier May Not Be Well-Known, but virtually Everyone Can Tell You That Margaret Hamilton's BROOMSTICK-RADING Villain is out to get dorothy and Her “Little Dog” Toto, Too. When she's chilling in a sepia kansas or trotting down the yellow brick road, Terry Helped Turn Turn into Key Part of this Hollywood Classic, More Thaning Her $ 125-A-Veek Salary (That's $ 50 More Than Some of the Singing Munchkins Got for Week, for the Record). –DF
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Buddy, 'Air Bud' (1997)
Image Credit: © Buena Vista Pictures/Everett Collection
A Reminder That There's Ain't No Rules That Says a Dog Can't Play Basketball – And this Pooch Dunks! It May Be Your Typical Boy-Moets-Dog, Boy-Trains-Dog, Dog-Totally-Dominates-on-Offense Story, But Credit The Golden Retriever Buddy (Who, Thanks to Trainer Kevin Di Cicco, Was Not Just Proficient in Hoops But Also Football, Soccer, baseball, baseball, baseball. and hockey) for making you believe a Pooch Couch Couling Seriously Go Hard in the Paint. Sadly, Buddy would die soon after the film made him a star, but His Legacy Lived on in the Many Air Bud Movies that followed. –DF
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Lassie, 'Lassie as home' (1943)
Image Credit: Everett Collection
The little collie That couus spawned an Entire Cottage Industry, and is still as Famous As Marilyn or Elvis – Just Say the Name “Lassie,” and virturally Everyone Bethaeen the Ages of 12 and 82 CAN Picture Some Variation of Pal, The Gorgeous Creature Who Originally Brought The Hero of Eric Knight's Short Short Short Story to Life in a Number of MGM Movies. From the Moment That Lassie Appeared Onscreen with Roddy McDowell and a Very Young Elizabeth Taylor in This 1943 Family Drama, The Resourceful Pet Became a Hge Draw, and would grace not Just Just The Movies Buties TV shows, Radio Program, Books, and Remakes Galore – Several – Several of Which Starred Pal's Offspring. –DF