Fury marked a high point for both Brad Pitt and director David Ayer, and now, the two are finally reuniting for another military thriller. However, unlike the front lines of World War II, Pitt and a German Shepherd companion are fighting the depths of the Alaskan wilderness in Heart of the Beast.
Former Army Special Forces Officer James Belmont (Pitt) and his dog Odin live a quiet life in Alaska after experiencing warfare together. However, when they accidentally crash during a casual flight, they have to fight their way back to civilization. Ahead of the film’s release in theaters on Sept. 25, Paramount finally unveiled the first trailer, which can be seen below.
What Can Audiences Expect From Heart of The Beast?
Ayer has been working on Heart of the Beast for some time, with news of the project first being revealed in January 2025. Later that year, the A Working Man director described it as a “classic old-school adventure movie” inspired by adventure thriller flicks from the days of classic Hollywood.
The trailer released on June 11 certainly lives up to that description. Once Pitt’s character and the dog are forced into their circumstances, they are shown the two in perilous situations. Needless to say, dog lovers may have to watch Heart of the Beast with their hands between their eyes.
For everyone else, they may find themselves captivated by Pitt’s performance, which Ayer recently hyped in an interview with GQ. “He was vulnerable and exposed himself in a way that I haven’t seen before,” he said. “A constant theme from people who have seen the film is just how raw and believable and profound his performance is.”
What Else Do We Know About Heart of the Beast?
Even though the majority of the film will center around Pitt and the adorable German Shepherd, there are a few other actors lending their talents to Heart of the Beast. J.K. Simmons (The Accountant 2) will appear in the film as a friend of Pitt’s character, while Anna Lambe (True Detective: Night Country) is expected to appear in an undisclosed role. Having a prominent Inuk actress appear in a major survival film set on native Alaskan land seems like an interesting idea, so fans are left to speculate on the extent of her role.
However, those are just human actors. Ayer told GQ that four separate German Shepherds were cast to play Odin: Uber, Hondo, Ryder, and Seeka. Uber is the father of the other three dogs and actually has experience being used in rescue missions across the mountains of New Zealand.
That seems to be all Ayer and Paramount, the distributors of Heart of the Beast, are looking to give audiences before the film releases. Based on the trailer and the images that were dropped, the film has the potential to be exactly the type of adventure thriller Ayer wanted to harken back to. That is, just so long as the dog doesn’t die.
Heart of the Beast will be released by Paramount Pictures in theaters on Sept. 25.
- Release Date
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September 23, 2026
- Director
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David Ayer
- Writers
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Cameron Alexander