NYPD K9 Unit Rottweiler

Cast: Will Arnett, Stanley Tucci, Gabriel Iglesias, Alan Cumming, Ludacris ., Shaquille O'Neal
Director: Raja Gosnell
Genre: Comedy
Running Time: 92 minutes

Synopsis: Max, a gruff NYPD K9 unit Rottweiler, inadvertently blows Federal Agent Frank Mosley's cover in an operation to catch the smugglers of a baby panda known as Ling-Li.

However, Max manages to corner one of the henchmen who tell of his ring-leader's plan to sell the panda at the Canini Invitational event in Las Vegas. This prestigious dog show attracts the richest people in the animal world and the 'Best In Show" is worth millions.

Frank takes the assignment but in order to gain access to the coveted event, he must pose as a contestant with a dog. Max, who happens to be a purebred Rottweiler, jumps at the opportunity to take down the evil gang.

Trouble is- Frank is convinced Max has anger issues, Max thinks Frank is stupid and both are entirely clueless about the glamorous world of show dogs.

On arrival in Vegas, Frank makes contact with the FBI's special canine consultant Mattie Smith, a professional dog handler and groomer. Meanwhile, Max tracks down and enlists the help of an old French Papillion by the name of Philippe, once a celebrated show champion. Philippe agrees to tutor Max and vows to turn this smelly street dog into a 'Best In Show" contestant.

First stop is the dazzling Canini Invitational opening party, where Max meets and gets the low down from the other dogs in the show including Daisy, a beautiful Australian Shepherd handled by Mattie; Sprinkles, an excitable chubby pug; Karma, a zen Komondor and Dante, a fancy Yorkshire terrier.

The following day, training begins and Max, the alpha male, has to endure a full body foil wrap, seaweed mud mask, bubble bath and even a bikini wax. If they fail to be accepted into the competition, Frank and Max will be sent back to New York and Ling-Li will be lost forever.

Respect and trust in one another grows when Frank and Max make it through and proceed to use any and all means necessary to win their way up the ranks. However, as the final round approaches they realize that whoever wins will become the most valuable canine in the world. The smugglers plan to steal the prize dog so they can sell it along with Ling-Li and a host of other valuable creatures that have mysteriously gone missing.

With a little help from their new friends, Frank and Max embark on a mission to out-smart the greedy traffickers, track down Ling-Li and rescue the other kidnapped animals, including the new champion of the Annual Canini Invitationa

Show Dogs
Release Date: July 5th, 2018

About The Production

The Locations

Show Dogs filmed at Pinewood Studio Wales and some interesting locations in and around Cardiff. It also filmed on location in Las Vegas.

Wales
The opening of the film sees Max spotting the smugglers arriving at NYC North Cove Marina. These scenes were shot at Alexandra Dock in Newport.

The Alexandra Dock was opened in 1875. It was further extended southwards with the addition of the South Dock, which in time assumed the original dock's name.

During construction of the South Dock in 1909, disaster struck when supporting timbers in an excavation trench collapsed and buried 46 workers. The rescuers included 12-year-old paper boy Thomas -Toya' Lewis who was small enough to crawl into the collapsed trench.

Lewis worked for two hours with hammer and chisel in an attempt to free one of those trapped enabling him to be released the next day. Several hundred pounds was later raised through public subscription in gratitude for the boy's efforts, and he was sent on an engineering scholarship to Scotland. Lewis was awarded the Albert Medal for Lifesaving by King Edward VII. Today, you can find a Wetherspoons pub in the city center called "The Tom Toya Lewis," named in honor of the young hero.

Several scenes were filmed at The Depot, Construction House in Cardiff. Most notable amongst these was the Las Vegas warehouse pool party, the dilapidated magician's warehouse, and the TV news studio.

From first opening the shutters in November 2015, DEPOT has since established itself as Cardiff's most exciting and original venue, and the home of the city's most creative events. Situated in a 24,000 sq ft former warehouse, DEPOT was the first to offer the people of Cardiff a permanent indoor street food venue. The weekly Street Food Social now runs every Saturday all year round. From launching a secret speakeasy pop-up, to hosting Wales's first independent beer festival, DEPOT continues to evolve, bringing new and original events to the city.

Scenes in the back stage grooming area of the dog show were filmed at Cardiff City Stadium.

The Cardiff City Stadium is a football stadium in the Leckwith area of Cardiff. It is the home of Cardiff City Football Club and the Wales national football team. Following expansion in 2014; the stadium now officially holds 33,280 supporters. After the Millennium Stadium, it is the second largest stadium in Cardiff and in Wales.

The scenes at the NYPD police station where FBI Chief tells Frank he needs to go undercover as a contestant at the dog show were filmed at Cory Building in Cardiff.

Cory's Building is a 5 story grade II listed building situated at the corner of Bute Place and Bute Street. It was built in 1889 and it was built for Cory Brothers & Co. Ltd.

The brothers were John Cory (1828–1910) and Richard Cory (1830–1914). The business included ship's chandlery, brokerage and the sale and export of coal. The company also owned several collieries in Wales. The brothers also became the largest private wagonowners in the United Kingdom, with over 5,000 wagons.

Today, the building is seeking planning permission to become part of a large commercial development called Merchant Place and will be renamed Cory Chambers.

On their quest to rescue the panda, Frank follows the smugglers to an aircraft hanger. These scenes were filmed a million miles away from the warmth of Vegas at a hanger belonging to RAF St Athan, South Wales.

Pinewood Studio Wales served as the production headquarters and the location for a number of set builds including the main stage arena, dog pound, Las Vegas rooftop party and all of the green screen shots.

Pinewood Studio Wales was announced in February 2014, after negotiations between Pinewood Group and the Welsh government resulted in an agreement for Pinewood to rent the site of the former Wentloog Environmental Centre in the suburb of St Mellons in northeast Cardiff. Construction began in the second half of 2014, and the studio opened in January 2015.

Since then it has housed several film and television productions including the forth series of the BBC drama 'Sherlock" and the historical television series 'The Bastard Executioner."

Las Vegas

The film crew travelled to the United States for nine days covering exterior scenes on the iconic streets of Las Vegas and the party scenes that take palace in Caesar's Palace Pool Bar. Situated on the west side of the Las Vegas Strip, Caesars is one of the most prestigious casino hotels in the world and is one of Las Vegas's largest and best known landmarks. Caesars Palace was established in 1966 by Jay Sarno who sought to create an opulent experience that gave guests a sense of life during the Roman Empire. The hotel is closely associated with the entertainment industry. Notable entertainers who have performed at Caesars include Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Dean Martin, Rod Steward, Celine Dion, Cher, Elton John, Liza Minnelli, Diana Ross and many more.

 

Fun Facts
 
- A Chow puppy doubled for the baby panda in the movie
- Opposite to her character in Show Dogs, the dog playing Daisy is a tom boy and hated any kind of grooming or pampering
- The costume department had to provide Will Arnett with 20 pairs of trousers for the scene in which Max tugs on his pants because they were shredded on each take
- 40 dogs were on set for the Vegas Pool party scene
- There were multiple dogs playing the same character in the film; 3 dogs playing Max, 3 playing Daisy, 3 playing Philippe, 2 playing Sprinkles, 2 playing Dante, 2 playing Karma and 2 playing Lopez

 

Meet The Dogs And Their Friends

MAX – Voiced by Chris 'Ludacris" Bridges

NYPD K9 Unit Rottweiler, Max is the alpha male who undergoes unthinkable pampering on his mission to rescue baby panda, Ling-Li.

DAISY – Voiced by Jordin Sparks
A gorgeous, perfumed and puffed Australian Shepherd who falls for Max's charms

PHILIPPE – Voiced by Stanley Tucci
An aging Papillon, once known as -Philippe De Fabulous' for being a three-time world champion Show Dog. Philippe agrees to come out of retirement to help Max on his mission to enter and win the Canini Invitational

KARMA – Voiced by Shaquille O'Neal
A big dreadlocked Komondor with a chilled out Buddhist attitude

SPRINKLES – Voiced by Gabriel 'Fluffy" Iglesias
An excitable Pug Dog – full name is -Buncha Rainbow Sprinkles Junior The Third'

DANTE – Voiced by Alan Cummings
Dante is a multi-award winning show dog Yorkshire Terrier. He is super cute and rather arrogant!

PERSEPHONE – Voiced by RuPaul
Persphone is the world's freakiest looking dog with bucket loads of attitude

PIGEONS 1, 2 AND 3 – Voiced by Anders Holm, Kate Micucci and Blake Anderson
The Pigeons are Max's eyes and ears in the sky with some witty one liners as well!


Raja Gosnell – Director
Raja Gosnell is the film's Director and has a history of highly successful family movies including Scooby Doo, The Smurfs, Beverly Hills Chihuaha and Big Momma's House.

When Raja received the script he said it felt like 'a fun throwback movie" explaining that, 'live action family movies are somewhat of an endangered species these days as most family entertainment is now animated" so when the opportunity to direct Show Dogs came his way, it felt like a 'fun challenge" that he wanted to be a part of.

Raja talks about his experience of working with Will Arnett saying, 'Working with Will Arnett is an absolute joy. He's so professional and understands the camera and the movement of the set. He's known for his outlandish characters but in Show Dogs he's a straight up leading man and has all the charm, insecurities, bravado and vulnerability that you want in a movie star."

Natasha Lyonne plays Mattie, an 'FBI canine consultant and is from the canini world." She's there to help Max and Frank navigate their way through the world of high end dog shows. Raja explains how Natasha welcomed the opportunity to show her 'softer character" and 'play more of the comedy that she's been known for.'' Raja describes how he found her 'delightful in this role."

Raja goes on to talk us through the voice-over cast starting with lead dog Max, and why they went with Chris 'Ludacris" Bridges to voice him. 'Chris -Ludacris' Bridges was our first choice. He has a warmth and humanity to his voice." He goes on to describe Max's important character arc; 'Max is an ill-tempered, grumpy loner and his journey is to learn to work with someone else. The lesson's that Max learns are some of the most heart touching things in the whole movie."

Stanley Tucci (Philippe) is 'a character who, despite being thrown out of the dog show world in disgrace, still has an immense love for it and understands the huge gravitas of the show dog world." For Raja it was an 'honor" working with Stanley and describes how his French accent is 'amazing" and he predicts that Phillipe is 'going to be one of the most beloved characters" of the movie.

Karma, played by Shaquille O'Neal, is a 'very cool character who drops in and drops these nuggets of wisdom." Shaq has 'so much personality and is so funny and brings his own quirks to the character of Karma."

Gabriel 'Fluffy" Iglesias is 'an amazing comedian" and his voice 'pairs brilliantly with the hyperactive pug, (Sprinkles) who is always enthusiastic and happy." Raja goes on to say, 'the amount of words per second that Gabriel can get out along with his explosive laugh and delivery makes for an amazing combination."

Alan Cumming (Dante) - Raja and Alan had worked together on The Smurfs so we happily reunited in the world of dog shows. Here in Show Dogs, 'Dante represents the snobby exclusive nature of the Canini. He plays a very proper, cutting English show dog. He's the five time champion who regards Max as an outsider."

When asked about the experience of working with dogs, Raja talked about the joy on set and how unique the experience was saying, 'These dogs come onto the set and they know they're the stars of the movie. They're like athletes, they train for certain things that they have to do and come onto set with so much joy and enthusiasm. It gave me so much respect for these dogs and their innate personalities but also for the trainers and coaches that work with them. They have such a unique bond with the dogs and their ability to communicate with them is jaw dropping."

When asked how much work the dogs were in post-production, Raja explains 'the only things we're doing in post-production, in terms of the dog's performance, is eyebrows and mouth and a few eye shapes. The rest is 100% the dog's performance."

When asked what he loves the most about the film, he explains that it's the universal appeal of the movie. He loves the idea that 'a child, a parent and a grandparent can all sit together laughing at the same joke, enjoying the same moment." The movie has 'a lot of ingredients that are just flat out fun." He really hopes the audience will 'enjoy the ride."



Natasha Lyonne – Mattie Smith
'It's sort of my dream movie. I love dogs and really felt like my entire life has been leading up to this moment." Natasha Lyonne talks of her enthusiasm for the Show Dogs project. 'It's clearly the role I was born for. I'm a huge fan of Will's, Stanley Tucci and Chris -Ludacris' Bridges, Alan Cummings and Shaquille O'Neal. These are really my favorite people so I was just really excited."

Natasha Lyonne stars in Show Dogs as Mattie Smith, describing her character as, 'Mattie has won Best In Show many times and this is her world. Will's character comes into it looking for help. Mattie is tasked with assisting Frank and Max to blend into the dog show. It's a bit of a challenge but she's up to it, as long as he plays by her rules."

Talking of her co-star, she joked, 'Will Arnett is so well suited to the role because I really believe he works for the FBI. Really, Will is a blast to work with and play off of. It makes my job very easy and fun."

Although Daisy is her number one, Lyonne confesses a passion for Rottweiler's. 'I will say that Max, played by Q, is a sensational Rottweiler. I grew up with Rottweiler's so I'm sort of predisposed to really loving them. I get right in a Rottweiler's face. I like to put my hands right in their jaw and Q seems to really enjoy that sort of manhandling approach."

Working with the director Raja was a treat for Lyonne explaining, 'Who is better equipped to make Show Dogs than the man who made BEVERLY HILLS CHIHUAHUA? Nobody is the answer! I really love that this is a movie I'd have no idea how to make. They're constantly bringing in the VFX globes and everything is about how they are going to CGI this and that. He's made these kinds of films before and that experience level makes for a very calm, safe environment. It's such a specific skill to be able to make these movies and make them great."

Lyonne shares her hopes for the Show Dogs audiences. 'Something that we've really paid attention to is trying to make sure that Mattie is a good foil for Frank. We talk a lot about Tracey and Hepburn, those kind of dynamics, where the woman is an equal match and will give him a run for his money.

'Also, the bad guys in the movie are really doing a horrible thing, trying to sell endangered species. Hopefully that will be part of the takeaway; a reminder of just how real animals are and how important it is to take care of them.

'Finally, I hope the takeaway is really to remember that it's always better to be weird than it is to not be. If your inner person is a show dog type, go ahead and be one because you may as well honor your inner self. Respect the show dog."

Omar Chaparro – Señor Gabriel
Omar Chaparro describes his villainous character of Señor Gabriel as 'a very wealthy man but a liar. He always looks good but he is someone you don't want to trust and you don't want to mess with him. He's kind of dangerous."

Chaparro describes himself completely different than his character emphasizing his love for dogs. 'These dogs, I love them. I work with the dog Karma, who is a Komondor breed – he is huge and looks like a massive mop." He compared working with dogs vs. humans saying, 'I've never worked with dogs before. Someone is talking to you, you talk back. With a dog it's different, they have different complications. What I was surprised about is that there aren't any human leading characters in this movie, all the leading roles are for the dogs."

When discussing working his with his human co-stars Will Arnett and Natasha Lyonne, Chaparro said, 'They are very nice guys, fun to work with. Natasha is always playing around. And Will is a very nice guy to talk to. They're both very professional. I'm so happy to work with them. I feel so grateful and lucky to be in this project."

Chaparro hopes that audiences will enjoy Show Dogs and see a different perspective saying, 'As humans we think we're the smart ones but, in this movie, you're going to realize it's the opposite and it's a very fun thing to watch. I love the script. The writer is very clever because he wrote this story to be watched by everyone, not only kids but adults too. It's a family movie, a great movie, very funny and it's going to make you laugh for sure."

Deepak Nayar – Producer
Deepak Nayar talks about how he became involved in the Show Dogs project. 'Philip Von Alvensleben, my producing partner, had developed the script. He gave it to me to read and I really enjoyed it, I thought it was very funny. The last family movie I produced was called Walking With Dinosaurs, so I was looking for another family film to make. Then he told me that Raja Gosnell was attached to direct. Raja has done some great family comedies so it became my next project."

When asked to describe the film, he said 'Some may say it's -Miss Congeniality set in the dog world' but I see this more as a buddy cop movie, except the buddy to the cop is a dog. It's about Frank and Max getting to know each other, solving a crime and in doing so, going through a lot of ups and downs together.

Will Arnett plays Frank, Nayar talks about why he is such a good fit for the character. 'Will is a great comedian and one of the things we wanted for Frank was someone who could bring a little bit more than is written on the page. Will can do that. He does a lot of improvisation. He's perfect. Also, the ability to work with a dog is always challenging and Will was able to handle that too. I consider him the Peter Sellers of modern day world."

Nayar was thrilled to cast Natasha Lyonne in the part of Mattie. 'We were looking for somebody who had a little je ne sais quoi about her, someone a little bubbly and easy to get along with, who loved dogs, Natasha fit that bill. Mattie, played by Natasha, is one of those people that has a great deal of knowledge about the dog contest world. Frank needs that kind of person to train him and Max to go into the Canini Invitational, so the part of Mattie is central to the script."

'Omar was an interesting choice for our villain. We wanted to go with somebody who really wasn't your typical bad guy. We wanted an actor who was a little suave. Omar was the one we sought out and he suits the character perfectly."

Show Dogs has some exciting voice actors playing the roles of dogs Nayar explained. 'The starting point was Chris -Ludacris' Bridges. We needed somebody who was tough, and so Chris -Ludacris' Bridges is ideal. Then Karma, the big dog that Gabriel owns, has got big dreadlocks and looks like a Rastafarian, chilled out dude. We thought Shaq would be suited for the part. He is very cool and the way he talks is just very zen."

'Then we looked for somebody to voice Dante who's very sure of himself, a little aristocratic and so Alan Cummings came to mind."

'I've always enjoyed seeing Stanley Tucci perform different characters. When we were looking for a voice for Philippe, Stanley came very much into mind. Luckily, I had recently done a film with him and I said "Stanley, you've got to do this film. You're the perfect part for this French Papillon dog. His wife was there as well, and I began to describe the character and she said, -Perfect! That is perfect for Stanley.'"

Working with the dogs has been an incredible experience for Nayar. 'We started the dog training five months before we started filming. One of the things that Mike Alexander [lead dog trainer] did was he went out and looked for dogs that didn't have any bad habits. All the key leads were bought in especially for this film and they were trained specifically for this job. Some of the things they have done are remarkable. It's just amazing to see what all they can do, it's been just phenomenal."

The opportunity to collaborate with director Raja Gosnell and others was one of the main reasons Nayar chose to get involved with the picture. 'Raja has been absolutely producer friendly and when someone is like that you want to go the distance for them because you know they are there for you too. David Mackie, our Director of Photography, has been just wonderful. He's absolutely given the little edge that you need in a film like this. The costume designer, Claire [Finlay-Thompson], has been wonderful. She's had a blast dressing up these dogs into different costumes. The other Claire [Pritchard-Jones], who is the hair and make-up supervisor, had the great opportunity of doing some wigs for the dogs and some hairdos for these parties. In that respect the crew has really enjoyed working on it because they had great fun."

Philip Von Alvensleben – Producer

 
Philip Von Alvensleben describes the film as 'a buddy comedy with two characters who are very self-centered in the beginning. They are loners, they don't want partners and during the course of the film they have to learn to work together. It's about two opposites coming together, finding themselves, learning to trust each other. Then they go out there and save, in this case, a panda."

Will Arnett was the perfect fit for the role of Frank. 'He's great at improvisation. He has the look, the attitude, the voice. He is extremely funny, spontaneous and I think he's fresh."

Natasha Lyonne plays Mattie, a dog groomer who takes Frank and Max under her wing. 'Natasha is equally funny. She is someone we haven't seen in a role like this before. It's exciting for an audience and she's extremely smart and beautiful. There is a spark in her eyes that transcends and it's great for the relationship between her and Frank."

Having a set full of dogs had a surprising effect on the film crew Alvensleben observed. 'A regular set is intense and often very stiff. The dogs have added a dimension that is very unique and makes everybody calm and happy. You expect complete chaos but it's a very organized, friendly environment. A big part of it obviously is that the actors, the director and the entire crew are great but what makes it fun to go in every morning are the dogs."

Talking of his great respect for the director and fellow producer, he said. 'Raja is only one of a handful of directors who can even pull something like this off and he's probably the king of the hill. His dedication to working on the script and seeing the project through has been incredible.

Alvensleben explains how Show Dogs is unique in its genre. This movie will be great for families of every age to see and to escape into a world of fantasy."

Michael Alexander – Lead Dog Trainer

 
A huge amount of preparation went into getting the dogs ready to film. 'We started training the dogs about 16 weeks before we began shooting on this show. Most of them are brand new dogs that we cast specifically for this movie, so we had 16 weeks of pretty intensive training."

Every effort is being made to film real live action. 'Obviously the talking dog part of it they will do in post-production because that's a little past our capabilities. As far as the rest of it goes we have gone into this project doing everything we can with the real dogs and sometimes we tweak a little bit how the script reads to make it work."

However, the most challenging work for the dogs is not always the big action he added. 'Often, it's the really meticulous talking in a talking dog movie, when the looks are so critical and we're trying to maintain the eye lines that I find it the most challenging. The bigger behaviors, jumping in the pool and the big chase scenes in the streets, those are all good fun things that the dogs really love to do."

Will Arnett became fond of the dog playing his cop partner, Max. 'Will's been fantastic. Will always spends a little time giving Q a bit of love and petting him. They get along great."

Show Dogs is Alexander's second collaboration with the director. 'Raja and I worked on Beverly Hills Chihuahua together. This has been such a great experience and the part I love the most is how collaborative it is. Deepak, Philip, Raja, Benita the AD, Will and the actors, the art department, hair and makeup, wardrobe, everybody, it's one big collaboration and it's truly been a fantastic experience."

Max Botkin – Writer
Screenplay writer, Max Botkin describes how this project was conceived. 'The origin of this movie was very random. I was just hanging out with my parents in Florida, sitting around the dinner table. I drifted off and I said, -What if we did a movie with a police dog who had to go undercover at a dog show and have a kind of fish out of water story?' The reaction was pretty good, so I came back to town, pitched it to a few friends and it seemed to spark."

Talking of dog/human genre, Botkin said 'I love watching humans and dogs interact, so the idea was to try and keep it as grounded as possible. I've always loved Rottweilers in particular and even named the lead dog after myself."

Watching the dogs perform on set was extraordinary for Botkin. 'The dogs' discipline is so far beyond what you would find in a normal household pet. There's something about them that feels like a very poised, polished actor and they've been a real pleasure."

Talking of the experience of working with the filmmakers he was complimentary. 'It's been the easiest and most enjoyable experience of my career thus far. When I met Philip, he responded to the material and we were in sync. Sitting down with Raja it was immediately apparent, especially for a director of his caliber, how collaborative and open he is to ideas. 'Watching Deepak work as a manager of this production, how he allows everyone to shine, I think is really great. We have a very special set I would say, there's an ease to things and a fluidity that is rare. The producers and Raja have really set a good tone and in that sense I think everyone's really enjoying themselves."

Talking of why this story will appeal to a wide audience Botkin said, 'The idea is to appeal to kids in the sense that you have characters they can connect with. But what we're also trying to do with casting, jokes and themes, is to elevate the material, to make it a little edgier than your typical family film so the adults are loving the film as much as kids are.

'People are dog fans, people love dog shows and they all have their favorite breed. This film gives them an entrance behind the scenes to the competition, the excitement and the drama of a world that's not really been seen on film.

Show Dogs
Release Date: July 5th, 2018