Universal Pictures on Monday afternoon unveiled Dog Man, an animated feature adaptation of the beloved book series by Dav Pilkey — the author-illustrator best known for his enduringly popular kids’ graphic novel series Captain Underpants. Dog Man has been slated by the studio to open wide on Friday, January 31, 2025.
Previously on the release schedule as Untitled DreamWorks Animation Film, the movie has no competitors yet on the release calendar as it looks to its first weekend in theaters.
Directed by Emmy winner Peter Hastings (The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants), Dog Man‘s plot is thrust into motion when a dog and a police officer are injured together on the job. A life-saving surgery thereafter changes the course of history when Dog Man is born. Half dog, half man, Dog Man is sworn to protect and serve — as long as he isn’t distracted by squirrels — as he doggedly pursues his arch-nemesis: the feline supervillain Petey the Cat. But the rivalry between Dog Man and Petey is upended by the arrival of an adorable kitten clone of Petey, Lil Petey, who changes the game for both of them.
The Dog Man Scholastic series, launched in 2016, currently consists of 11 books, with 12th entry Dog Man: The Scarlet Shedder scheduled to hit shelves in March. The series has been translated into 45 languages, selling more than 60 million copies in print, also spawning spinoff Cat Kid Comic Club, which topped global bestseller lists when it debuted in 2020.
Serving as producer for the Dog Man feature is Karen Foster (Spirit Untamed). Hastings is repped by Gotham Group.