Celebrities Who Ended Up Adopting Their Animal Co-Stars
Lead actors know they’ll probably leave a film with millions of dollars, a legion of new fans, and maybe even a cool prop or wardrobe item. But they might not expect to leave with a new furry family member! Yet over the course of Hollywood history, plenty of stars have formed special bonds with the animals they’ve worked with, be it a dog, a cat, a horse, or even a baby deer — so much so that they ended up taking them home!
1. Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor shot to fame at only 12 years old in 1944’s National Velvet, a picture that saw her playing a young rider who dresses up as a male jockey to win the Grand National. The horse she rode in the movie was named King Charles, and she had ridden him for years at her local country club.
She told Interview, “He was a wild, thoroughbred racehorse that nobody else could ride, and, of course, that thrilled me to the core and made me his, and he mine.” King Charles was reportedly a handful and may have bitten some members of the crew! That didn’t stop Taylor from falling in love with him, though.
One heck of a 13th-birthday present
In fact, Taylor loved King Charles so much that she begged MGM head honcho Louis B. Mayer throughout the shoot to let her keep him. In the end, Mayer gave her the horse as a birthday gift. Perhaps because he would then be her problem, not the studio’s!
The horse was kept at a stables for the rest of his life, and Taylor would regularly visit. She told AFI, “I think Velvet is still the most exciting film I’ve ever done. And at the end, to be given the horse on my 13th birthday — well, it was one of the moments of my life.”
2. Sarah Jessica Parker
In Sex and the City revival show And Just Like That… Carrie Bradshaw adopts an adorable cat who she names Shoe. In real life, the kitty’s name is Lotus, and he was provided to the show by the Connecticut Humane Society.
The organization posted on Facebook, “Some pets get really exciting foster homes while they're here… Little Lotus got to be on the set of And Just Like That with Sarah Jessica Parker in Manhattan! Did you see his adorable debut?” And in the end, it turned out the audience weren’t the only ones who fell in love with Lotus.
A furry family of three
In August 2023 Parker wrote on Instagram, “Adopted officially by the Parker/Broderick family in April 2023. He joins Rémy and Smila who we adopted in May 2022. If he looks familiar, that's because he is.”
That’s right: Parker took the little guy home to live with her other two cats, and he couldn’t be happier! She even shared a bit of background on his unique name, writing, “He and his siblings were all given botanical names when they were rescued as newborns.”
3. Chris Evans
Saying Chris Evans loves dogs is something of an understatement: according to the man himself, he’s “a dog lunatic!” During the shoot of 2017’s Gifted, the actor wound up filming in a pound and pretty much immediately knew he wouldn’t be able to help himself.
He told People, “I foolishly walked in, and I thought, ‘Are these actor dogs or are these real up-for-adoption dogs?’” To his delight, the pooches were up for grabs, so he strolled up and down the aisles before he laid eyes on one canine in particular.
Dodger comes into Evans’ life
The Captain America star revealed, “I… saw this one dude, and he didn’t belong there. I snagged him, and he’s such a good dog. They aged him at about one. He acts like a puppy; he’s got the energy of a puppy. He’s just such a sweetheart; he’s such a good boy.”
Dodger, as Evans named the little guy, became both his best pal and a great litmus test for potential paramours, with the star telling E! News, “Look, not everyone likes dogs. That's okay. But to not be charmed by him in the least might say something.”
4. Brendan Fraser
When Brendan Fraser began shooting History’s Texas Rising, a ten-part historical TV event, the movie star was moving into uncharted territory. As he grappled with the new longform format, though, he found himself bonding with one of his co-stars: his horse Pecas!
Fraser told The Canadian Press, “He was my acting partner,” and, when the shoot finished, he found himself struggling to let go. So, he brought Pecas home, saying, “It wasn’t headed to the glue factory or anything horrible, but I thought, ‘I want to do well by him, too.’”
“Get me out of here, man"
In 2018 Fraser told GQ that he actually felt he and Pecas had shared a profound moment of understanding which prompted his adoption. He claimed, “Without doing too much — what's the word? Anthropomorphic? Anthropomorphizing? Without pretending that the animal is a human, he looked like he needed help. Like, ‘Get me out of here, man!’”
It turned out to be a great decision, as Fraser’s oldest son, who has autism, began singing — something he hadn’t done since childhood — when he first sat on the beautiful animal’s saddle. Aww.
5. Taylor Swift
Did you know there’s a program in Hollywood that places cats in commercials and music videos in an attempt to convince people to adopt them? Or, at least, that’s what Taylor Swift says. And the program certainly worked on her!
In 2019 she shot a video for her single “ME!” and it featured a cuddly little fuzzball called Benjamin Button, and she was told he didn’t have a forever home. The animal handler sneakily asked Swift whether she wanted to hold him before cameras rolled; the rest is history.
“The best little guy"
During an Instagram Live session, Swift revealed, “She handed me this tiny cat and he just starts purring and he looks at me like, ‘You’re my mom, and we’re going to live together.’ I fell in love.”
Panic! At The Disco singer Brendon Urie — who had been collaborating with Swift on the song — saw what was going on and semi-jokingly asked, “You’re going to get the cat, aren’t you?” Swift laughed, “He literally looked at me like, ‘Adopt me please.’” She enthused, “He’s just the best boy. He’s the best little guy.
6. Sophie Turner
Sophie Turner was 13 years old when she began playing Sansa Stark in HBO’s all-conquering Game of Thrones. The young girl formed a close bond with the animal playing her “direwolf” Lady in the first series.
In reality, Zunni wasn’t a wolf at all: she was a northern Inuit dog, a close relative of the Siberian husky breed. When [spoiler alert] Lady was killed off on the show, Turner didn’t want to part ways. She told Coventry Live, “We knew… they wanted to re-home her. My mum persuaded them to let us adopt her.”
Zunni was a bit of a diva
Zunni wound up living with Turner’s parents in Warwickshire until her death at the age of 11. In 2019 Turner chuckled as she revealed she may have been the only one to fall in love with the dog on-set, admitting to Harper’s Bazaar, “Zunni was a terrible actor, really bad on set.”
Turner continued, “She wouldn’t respond to any of my calls, and everyone was ready to fire her, so we took her on when I was 14! She was about 3 feet tall and pretty big.”
7. Robert Redford
When Robert Redford was asked to explain why he chose to star as an over-the-hill rodeo star in 1979’s The Electric Horseman, he was clear in his answer: it was all about the horses.
He revealed, “For me it was a chance to demonstrate my own particular affinity for horses, but the film is also about a way of life out West whose disappearance is sad but inevitable. Still, at the heart of the story is a man whose sensitivity is towards a horse.”
Life on the Sundance ranch
The horse in the film was called Rising Star, and he was portrayed by a five-year-old thoroughbred named Let’s Merge. He was super-well-behaved on-set, and Redford was able to do all his own riding and stunts in the picture.
In fact, the leading man became so attached to his co-star that he wound up purchasing him. He then took the stallion back to his expansive Sundance ranch in Utah, where the beast lived out the rest of his years galloping around the picturesque dusty plains.
8. Tiffany Haddish
In 2016 Hollywood’s premier animal trainer Larry Payne was interviewed by People about being chief kitten-wrangler on Key and Peele’s comedy Keanu. He spoke about how the actors and crew members had loved to cuddle the kitties between takes — within reason, of course.
After all, he revealed, “We like to share the animals with the crew, but at the same token, when I have certain shots coming up, it’s off-limits to hold the kittens for 10-15 minutes before the shot.” One actor was particularly interested in the moggies, though.
Haddish now has her very own Keanu named Catonic
“With the brown tabbies, I gave actress Tiffany Haddish one of the kittens,” revealed Payne. “It was named Clementine, but I think she changed it to Catatonic. That was a really cute kitten.”
As Haddish would reveal on Instagram, though, the adorable feline’s name was actually “Catonic,” and she loved being petted by the comedienne. Fast-forward to 2017 and Haddish posted a picture of Catonic — very much not kitten-sized anymore — hiding out in her suitcase. Maybe she didn’t want mom to go to work!
9. Audrey Hepburn
Beverly Hills residents in 1958 couldn’t believe their eyes when they saw Hollywood leading lady Audrey Hepburn in a local supermarket. It wasn’t because they weren’t used to seeing celebrities about town, though: that’s par for the course in Hollywood.
It was because the icon was taking her new pet for a walk — a fawn named Ip that she had met on the set of Green Mansions! The sight of a cute little deer helping Hepburn choose her groceries was enough to surprise even the most blasé members of the community.
Ip charmed everyone except Mr. Famous
Hepburn had bonded with the animal while shooting the movie and fed it milk from a bottle like a baby. When the shoot finished, she wanted to keep Ip, but it wasn’t allowed. Yet when she suffered a miscarriage only a year later, her husband knew there was only one thing that would truly ease her pain.
He managed to find Ip, and the family did adopt the little deer, much to everyone’s joy. Well, everyone except the family pooch Mr. Famous, who was reportedly deeply unamused by his new roommate!
10. Kim Novak
In 1958’s Bell, Book and Candle Kim Novak played a witch who casts a love spell on her neighbor, played by Hollywood’s premier everyman James Stewart. She has a Siamese cat in the movie, who was portrayed by a number of different kitties, depending on what the shots dictated.
The cat in close-ups was named Pyewacket, and Novak took such a shine to him that trainer Frank Inn gave him to Novak to adopt when filming wrapped. She took him home to New York City, but he would prove to be a mischievous little fellow!
Pyewacket, the silly boy
In 1960 Novak paid for an advertisement in The New York Times that begged citizens to keep an eye out for her beloved Pyewacket, who had absconded from her garden and gone missing. It turned out he had slipped into a home with two other Siamese cats, but instead of playing nice, he had sunk his teeth into the owner’s secretary and had been thrown in an animal shelter!
The secretary, to her credit, spotted Novak’s plea and contacted the actress, telling her where Pyewacket was. The relieved actress admitted at the time that she’d punish him, “But not much. I’m too happy to have the silly boy back!”
11. Viggo Mortensen
Viggo Mortensen is the patron saint of actors adopting an animal co-star. After all, he’s taken home four horses over the course of his career! When asked by NME magazine if it was true he’d bought his steed from The Lord of the Rings, he replied, “There were actually three horses that I bought.”
The star continued, “They were up for sale once the movies were done. There were the two I’d ridden — a chestnut and then the big bay that Aragorn rides — but I also bought the white horse that Arwen rides in The Fellowship Of The Ring.”
The man just loves horses
The Academy Award nominee also gained a horse after shooting 2004’s Hidalgo. He told IGN, “I had no intention of buying a horse off of this movie. But with T.J…I just got to really, really like him. He's got such a unique, strong personality.”
He also genuinely thought the animal was a great actor, claiming, “It's amazing to me, he picked up all these tricks… Even the acting of being really fried and then falling down. A lot of horses wouldn't just fall like a sack of potatoes; they would go down slowly and protect themselves… It’s incredible what he did.”
12. Peri Gilpin
When you think back upon Frasier, everyone’s favorite delightfully erudite ‘90s sitcom, a list of amazing characters come to mind. Bumbling psychiatrist Frasier Crane, his snobby-but-hilarious brother Niles, eccentric English care-giver Daphne, and Frasier’s irascible-but-lovable father Martin.
None of these characters received the most fanmail, though: that honor went to Eddie, Martin’s adorable Jack Russell terrier! That little fella was played by a dog named Moose, who was a source of both endless energy and was incredible at obeying commands on set.
Moosie finds a good home
The show ran for 11 seasons, and the crew knew they might need a replacement Moose at some point. So, they bred him in the hopes of ending up with a lookalike puppy — and they got that with Enzo, who took over from his dad from season eight onwards.
But there were also two other pups. Miko and Moosie were too small and too distinctively marked to double for their father. Luckily, cast member Peri Gilpin — who played the feisty Roz — took Moosie home and gave him a good life!
13. Roy Rogers
Western icon Roy Rogers and his faithful horse Trigger weren’t just an on-screen duo: the actor owned the horse in real life, too. For his first lead role in 1938’s Under the Western Stars, Rogers was given his pick of a handful of potential horses to work with. But as soon as he rode a trusty steed named Golden Cloud, he knew tat was the one.
When a co-star suggested the horse was so darn fast that Rogers really ought to call him “Trigger,” the star agreed and bestowed the animal with his soon-to-be famous moniker.
The best $2,500 Rogers ever spent
Rogers knew he wanted to own the horse, but at that point he had only been making $75 a week while under contract to Republic Pictures. With no experience owning horses, and no real idea of how he’d pay for the upkeep, Rogers agreed to an instalment plan where he’d eventually pay $2,500 — the same as an astonishing $30,000 today!
As Trigger went on to star in an incredible 88 films with Rogers, though, he’d later look back upon that investment as “for sure and certain, the best $2,500 I have ever spent.”
14. Yvette Nicole Brown
When Yvette Nicole Brown signed up to play Aunt Sarah in the Disney+ remake of Lady and the Tramp, she knew she’d struggle with one aspect of the character. She chuckled to People, “Sarah don’t like dogs. Yvette does!”
She elaborated, “Every day on set, I had to yell at beautiful, innocent puppies, which was horrible for me as a person, but I think it was hilarious.” Throughout the entire shoot, Brown couldn’t help wondering if she’d be able to take one of the super-cute rescue pooches home.
“He’s a maniac, but I love him"
In the end, the dog trainer chose which canine was most appropriate for each owner. Brown explained, “She watched you the entire run of the show and at the end she goes, ‘I think I have your dog.’ I said, ‘Oh! Who is it?’ and she says, ‘Harley is your dog.’
“She was 100 percent right. Harley is my dog. I love him. He’s a maniac, but I love him!” Brown then did what any self-respecting dog mommy does these days: she started Harley an Instagram page! Showbiz, huh?
15. David Dastmalchian
Character actor David Dastmalchian memorably played villain-with-a-heart Polka Dot Man in James Gunn’s riotous 2021 D.C. Comics adaptation The Suicide Squad. When the movie was shooting in Panama, he spotted a stray cat hanging around the set and couldn’t help falling for her.
In June 2021 he posted a heartwarming series of pictures to his Instagram account of himself with the beautiful cat wearing an amazing kitty-sized Polka Dot costume created by the film’s costume designer Judianna Makovsky!
Abner Bubblegum Polka Dot Cat
The happy star wrote, “With the help of my The Suicide Squad family and some generous animal-lovers in Panama, I was able to rescue Bubblegum — full name: Abner Bubblegum Polka Dot Cat. She has been a blessing to our family and was instrumental in helping us through the pandemic.
“Please adopt, don’t shop, and spay/neuter your pets.” His message was a charming ode to the wonderful healing power of pets, who really can help people get through hard times simply by being their loving selves.