A new film opening this month, A Dog’s Purpose, a film about a pup who is reincarnated as different breeds with several owners throughout his lifetime, is getting alot of attention but for the wrong reason.
The company behind the movie has released a statement responding to a controversial video that appeared to show a terrified German shepherd being forced to perform a stunt during filming.
On Wednesday, January 18, TMZ posted the video of a handler trying to put a German shepherd into a pool of rushing water, as the distressed pooch scrambles to stay on land and repeatedly tries to jump out of the pool. “He wants to get away, just throw him in,” a voice in the background says.
There is also a short scene where it appears the dog is drowning. Now animal rights groups are calling attention to it and recommending a boycott to say this is not the way we treat our animals.
Stephen Spielberg's company Amblin Entertainment produced the film and Universal Pictures told CNN that the dog in question, Hercules, had several days of rehearsal of the water scenes to ensure he was comfortable with the stunt. However actor Josh Gad, who appears in the film, posted this on Twitter.
Here is the video
Gad is calling for "an explanation," and so is director Lasse Hallstrom, who says "I have been promised that a thorough investigation into this situation is underway and that any wrongdoing will be reported and punished."