“Strays” (2023).Photo:Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures
Make no mistake, parents: This talking-dog movie is for the grownups.
Strays, which opens in theaters on Friday, is not geared to children despite its cuddly stars. Billed as a “subversion of the dog movies we know and love,” the comedy is rated R for “pervasive language, crude and sexual content, and drug use.”
Other cast members include Will Forte, Josh Gad, Harvey Guillén, Brett Gelman, Rob Riggle, Jamie Demetriou and Sofia Vergara.
Director Josh Greenbaum (Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar) toldColliderthat the Motion Picture Association, which decides film ratings, thoughtStrayswas a “definitive R; there was not really much discussion.”
“Strays” (2023).Universal Pictures
Greenbaum also shared that Ferrell, 56, askedone of his teenage sonswhether he should make the movie.
“He was asking his youngest, who probably was 13 at the time, 12 or 13, ‘Hey Axel, would you want to see me in an R-rated talking-dog movie, where the mission for me, along with my other stray dog friends is bite my owner’s d— off?’ And Axel was like, ‘One thousand percent, yes, do the movie immediately.’ And so Will, I think half-jokingly, credits his son with green-lighting him getting involved,” the director said.
Apart from featuring plenty of coarse language,Straysalso sees the dog group get high after eating wild mushrooms, and includes what a press release referred to as “the unexpected virtues of couch-humping.” The raunchyred band trailerfor the film gives a taste of what to expect.
Director Greenbaumtold Slashfilmthe filmmakers were “dialing up and down the knobs” to push the boundaries of an R rating while making the movie.
“You’re always trying to figure out where the line is,” he said. “Once you’ve gotten into the R-rated kind of outrageous comedy, I think you want to push that line because you want to surprise an audience.”
And, Greenbaum didn’t want the movie to be a parody of the genre, rather standing on its own four feet.
“Ultimately, the film is not a spoof movie, which is why I loved it when I first read it. It really operates on its own. We send up that genre that I love, likeHomeward Bound,Milo and Otis,Beethoven, all those kind of fun films,” he explained. “There are moments where we send that up, but the film really functions on its own.”
“… It actually has a lot more heart and an emotional center. It’s outrageous and funny and loud and irreverent and all the things you can hopefully glean from the trailer,” Greenbaum continued. “But I’m very excited to say that it also has this very surprising emotional center, which is really important for me as a filmmaker.”
Straysis in theaters Friday.
source: people.com
