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Here's Why The First John Wick Movie Spent Around $5,000 On CGI Dog Poop
You can get away with a lot in Hollywood, but feeding a puppy laxatives is way beyond the pale.
You can get away with a lot in Hollywood, but feeding a puppy laxatives is considered way beyond the pale.
And yeah, we get it. That's straight-up animal abuse and would never fly with the American Humane Association. So what do you do when you absolutely need to show a creature defecating onscreen? Well, you turn to CGI, of course, though the resultant digital imagery may end up taking a crap-load (pun intended) out of your overall production budget.
For More on John Wick:
Everything We Know So Far About a Possible John Wick: Chapter 5
The Continental Director on "Reverse Engineering" Ian McShane and Lance Reddick’s Characters for John Wick Spinoff
John Wick 4 Had Alternate Ending With Keanu Still Alive - But Test Audiences Didn't Like It
The First John Wick Movie Dropped Big Money on CGI Dog Poop
In the commentary track for the original John Wick movie, director Chad Stahelski and co-director/producer David Leitch reveal that the turd dropped by John's ill-fated beagle puppy, Daisy — may she Rest In Peace — was entirely brought to life with VFX and cost around $5,000. That's one expensive deuce!
"They wouldn't let us give laxatives to the puppy," Stahelski says (/FILM were first to point this out this fun bit of fecal trivia).
"Actually, we turned that shot back in about 25 times," Leitch adds.
Stahelski continues: "Yeah, the poop just wasn't makin' it."
This exchange was most likely a joke between the filmmakers, but we wouldn't put it past a franchise known for its meticulous fight choreography to agonize over a single shot of puppy scat.
The John Wick saga lives on with The Continental: From the World of John Wick, now streaming on Peacock. Serving as a prequel to the hit blockbuster films, the show explores how a young Winston Scott (played by Colin Woodell) took control of the assassin-centric hotel in '70s-era New York.
John Wick Chapters 1-3 are now streaming on Peacock alongside the prequel series, The Continental: From the World of John Wick.
Originally published Aug 28, 2023.
