Disney Plus: All the canine content available at launch

Disney Plus releases on November 12 – what canine content can we expect at launch?

Disney Plus will release on Tuesday, November 12, 2019, bringing together Star Wars, Marvel, and National Geographic content all together under one streaming service alongside Disney classics and obscure titles that honestly sound like they were made up for a board game.

This will include a respectable amount of canine content right off the bat, as well. Due to the sheer amount of information dropped all at once, it’s likely we missed some stuff, but what follows is Dog O’Day’s recounting of the canine content that will be part of the initial lineup.

While MovieWeb and Polygon both released updates on what the initial roster of content would look like, the floodgates really opened on Monday morning, October 14, with a COLOSSAL thread from the official Disney Plus account on Twitter.

The leading news is, of course, the original remake of Lady and the Tramp, which stars Tessa Thompson and Justin Theroux as the voices of the title characters. (The second trailer was also released later in the day.)

The animated 1955 original starring Barbara Luddy is also there for comparison purposes, as is the sequel Lady and the Tramp II: Scamp’s Adventure, which follows their son Scamp (Party of Five’s Scott Wolf) and his girlfriend Angel (Alyssa Milano of Who’s the Boss? and Charmed).

But honestly, that’s just the start. The original 1955 animated classic is also on the service, and for fans of Goofy, there are at least three movies starring Mickey Mouse’s pal.

He explores through South America with Donald Duck in 1942’s Saludus Amigos, and then there are A Goofy Movie and An Extremely Goofy Movie, from 1995 and 2000, which each focus on Goofy’s relationship with his son Max.

Disney Plus has your Dalmatian fix as well.

If you’re more of a fan of the characters inspired by Dodie Smith’s novel The Hundred and One Dalmatians, then you’re covered, too – not only will the original animated classic 101 Dalmatians from 1961 be part of the lineup, but so will its’ little-known animated sequel 101 Dalmatians II: Patch’s London Adventure.

This is in addition to the wonderfully overlooked 101 Dalmatians: The Animated Series from ABC’s One Saturday Morning lineup, which takes place on Dalmatian Plantation, and the live-action 101 Dalmatians and 102 Dalmatians, from 1996 and 2000, respectively, which star Glenn Close (The Natural, Air Force One, Hoodwinked) as legendary villainess Cruella de Vil. (Emma Stone will play the role in an upcoming prequel.)

The incredibly deep (though some might call it “melancholy”) 1981 movie The Fox and the Hound, about the limits of the friendship between Todd the fox )and hound dog Copper, also is included.

This movie stars Mickey Rooney (Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town, THe Black Stallion, Night at the Museum) and Kurt Russell (Stargate, Miracle, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2), and also features Jack Albertson (Willa Wonka and the Chocolate Factory), Paul Winchell (the original voice of Tigger) and Pat Buttram (The Aristocats, Green Acres). 

There was a prequel made in 2006 that’s confusingly titled The Fox and the Hound 2, which stars country star Reba McEntire, comedian Jeff Foxworthy and Patrick Swayze (The Outsiders, Dirty Dancing, Point Break).

The mother of all tearjerkers when it comes to sad animals, 1957’s Old Yeller, based on William Gipson’s novel of the same name, is also available. This story is set in South Texas in the 1860s.

A 1961 film called Grayfriars Bobby is about a Skye Terrier in mid-nineteenth century Scotland, who guarded his master’s grave for 14 years at an Edinburgh cemetery. This doesn’t sound like it would make for a very interesting plot, but it’s a decent premise for a apocryphal urban legend.

The very odd buddy comedy that pairs a fastidious detective played by a young Tom Hanks (A League of Their Own, Sleepless in Seattle, Toy Story) with a slobbering hulk of a canine in Turner and Hooch is also ready to go from the start. Craig T Nelson (All the Right Moves, Coach, The Incredibles) stars as Hanks’ boss in this murder mystery set in a sleepy coastal Northern California town.

Despite suffering from severe whiplash as far as tone goes, a glacial pacing problem, and far too many scenes of Tom Hanks in his underwear, this is a moving and hilarious classic.

Talking dogs and long heroic journeys are a staple of Disney Plus canine content.

The Incredible Journey, a 1963 movie based on the 1961 novel of the same name written by Scottish author Sheila Bumford, follows Luath the Labrador Retriever, Bodger the Bull Terrier and their Siamese cat sibling Tau as they trek through the Ontario forest back to their home.

The Incredibly Journey is far overshadowed by its 1993 remake Homeward Bound, and for good reason: Homeward Bound is far superior.

Homeward Bound is the story of the wise elderly Golden Retriever Shadow, the impulsive Bulldog Chance, and Sassy the Himalayan cat, voiced by Robert Duvall (To Kill a Mockingbird, The Natural, Days of Thunder), Michael J Fox (Back to the Future, Spin City, Atlantis) and Sally Field (Steel Magnolias, Where the Heart Is, The Amazing Spider-Man), respectively.

Together they have to find their way through the Sierra Nevada Mountains before their owners get back from vacation. Fox and Field all reprised their roles for the 1996 sequel, Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco, which also features Carla Gugno (Chicago Hope, Spy Kids, Watchmen) as Chance’s streetwise girlfriend Delilah.

Returning to animated fare, the underrated 1988 classic Oliver and Company proves that the only way a Charles Dickens tale is tolerable is if it’s told by talking (and singing) animals. (This is also why we like the Dickens stories on Wishbone as well.) This loose adaptation of Oliver Twist stars Billy Joel, Joey Lawrence and Cheech Marin, and is one of Kimberley’s favorites.

Twenty years after Oliver came Bolt, starring John Travolta (Carrie, Grease, Pulp Fiction) as canine action star Bolt and Miley Cyrus (Hannah Montana, The Last Song, Black Mirror) as his owner Penny.

The animated shorts Lend a Paw, which stars Pluto and won an Academy Award in 1942, and Dug’s Special Mission, starring the belovedly clueless dog from Up, are also there for the watching.

Doug Funnie’s dog Porkchop provides an important function of comfort and creativity in the One Saturday Morning TV series Doug and Doug’s First Movie.

If the Taco Bell Chihuahua is your favorite onscreen doggo of all time, then Beverly Hills Chihuahua and its sequels, Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2 and Beverly Hills Chihuahua 3: Viva La Fiesta, could be just what you’re looking for.

They star George Lopez (George Lopez, Spy Kids, World’s Most Amazing Dog) and Drew Barrymore, Lacey Chabert, Jamie Lee Curtis, Edward James Olmos, Emily Osment and Piper Perabo all make appearances as well, as this is a fun trilogy with some serious continuity problems.

Possibly the best franchise about dogs ever, though with a mind-boggling amount of continuity errors, is the Air Bud series. While none of the original five movies (Air Bud, Air Bud: Golden Receiver, Air Bud: World Pup, Air Bud: Seventh Inning Fetch and Air Bud Spikes Back) are on Disney Plus, many of the spinoff Air Buddies series are.

Following Buddy and Molly’s puppies, The Search for Santa Paws, Santa Paws 2: The Santa Pups, Santa Buddies, Snow Buddies, Space Buddies, Super Buddies and Treasure Buddies are all part of the Disney Plus roster.

Both the 1984 and 2012 Tim Burton-directed versions of Frankeweenie are there for a spooky feel, and for outlandish mindless antics, look no further than 2000’s inspector Gadget (starring Matthew Broderick of WarGames and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off) and Inspector Gadget 2, both of which heavily feature Brain the Beagle.

These movies are truly dreadful, but are perfect for six-year-olds or if you’re incredibly sick, and Brain is a large reason why Beagles are one of Wesley’s favorite dog breeds.

An underrated pair of actresses, Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s Melissa Trachtenberg and Caitlin Wachs (Air Bud series and Commander in Chief), shared the role of Penny.

If sled dogs are more your speed, there are options to choose from in 1994’s Iron Will or 2002’s Eight Below and Snow Dogs, besides some of the other titles already mentioned.

Both the 1959 and the 2006 Tim Allen versions of The Shaggy Dog are part of the lineup, in addition to the original’s sequel The Shaggy DA. 

Disney Plus features a handful of Disney Channel Original Movies starring dogs, and a good array of movies and shows with other important pets.

There are also a trio of Disney Channel Original Movies that specialize in good(ish) doggos.

1998’s You Lucky Dog, the second DCOM ever released, which stars Kirk Cameron (Growing Pains, Left Behind, Fireproof) as an unsuccessful dog therapist who becomes the caretaker of a dog who inherits a fortune from its late owner.

Hounded, a 2001 movie starring Tahj Mowry (Full House, Smart Guy, Kim Possible) and Shia LeBouf (Even Stevens, Holes, Transformers) deals with a show dog going crazy off her meds and a prep school’s scholarship contest among the humans.

Life is Ruff, from 2005, stars Kyle Massey (That’s So Raven, Cory in the House), Mitchell Musso (Hannah Montana, The Search for Santa Paws, Phineas and Ferb) and Kay Panabaker (Read It and Weep, Phil of the Future, 2007 Emma Roberts Nancy Drew).

The plot follows a shelter dog who becomes a show dog thanks to the schemes of three middle schoolers. Kay Panabaker, the sister of The Flash’s Danielle Panabaker, plays a shelter volunteer, and in real life now works at Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

1987’s Benji the Hunted features Benji trying to survive in the forests of Oregon.

The Ugly Dachshund, from 1966, stars Dean Jones (That Darn Cat!, The Love Bug, Beethoven) and follows a Great Dane who thinks he’s a Dachshund.

2007’s Underdog is a spoof of Superman based on a 1960s cartoon TV series, and it works brilliantly. It stars Amy Adams (Talladega Nights, Enchanted, Arrival), Jim Belushi (K-9, Snow Dogs, According to Jim), Peter Dinklage (Elf, Game of Thrones, Avengers: Infinity War) and The Pretty Reckless lead singer Taylor Momsen (Gossip Girl).

The Disney Junior series Puppy Dog Pals, about a pair of Pug brothers who go on adventures around the neighborhood when their owner is at work, is a good fit for preschoolers.

Decidedly not for preschoolers, however, is the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s one certain small-screen failure: the TV series Inhumans, which heavily features the teleporting Bulldog lockjaw.

There are also documentary series from National Geographic available, which include Dog Whisperer with Cesar Milan, How Dogs Got Their Shapes, Kingdom of the White Wolf, and World’s Greatest Dog. 

Finally, Disney Plus has the shows and movies with dog substitutes – pets that aren’t canines, but often act or function in the same way as a companion dog does.

These include Frozen, with Kristoff’s reindeer Sven, and its much better predecessor Tangled, with Flynn’s cantankerous horse Maximilian, and Captain Marvel, with the terrific cat/alien Goose.

In Lilo and Stitch (and its sequel Leroy and Stitch and Lilo and Stitch: The Animated Series), the little blue alien is called a dog at various points.

Kim Possible’s Ron Stoppable has a naked mole rat named Rufus, who joins in the spy missions more often than not, also appearing in the canonical movies Kim Possible: A Stitch in Time and Kim Possible: So the Drama.

Finally, Phineas and Ferb stars Perry the Platypus as the Flynn-Fletcher family pet, in addition to being the world’s greatest animal spy. His colleague Pinky the Chihuahua (who belongs to Isabella Garcia-Shapiro) is a recurring character.

What are you most likely to watch first when Disney Plus launches? Let us know on the Dog O’Day Facebook page.