Pluto Unleashed? Quarantine-Inspired Puppy Lands “Two-Legged” Hollywood Reps In Gotham Group

Patrick Hipes and Antonia Blyth
·3 min read

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EXCLUSIVE: Pluto, the puppy Internet sensation of quarantine, has got just herself what she would call “two-legged” representation. The “talking” miniature Schnauzer beloved by stars like Jennifer Aniston, Drew Barrymore, Sia and Robin Wright has been signed by The Gotham Group, which produced The Maze Runner franchise and Disney+’s Stargirl, and literary agency Sterling Lord Literistic, which has bestselling author Rachel Maddow among its clients. Deadline hears a television project will likely be Pluto’s first pursuit.

Pluto recently found fame with her Pluto Living PSAs, otherwise known as Pluto Service Announcements, in which she “tells’ viewers—whom she calls “two-leggeds”—everything from how to relieve stress during quarantine, to reminding us to appreciate our healthcare workers.

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Beginning with a Facebook video on March 17 (see it below), Pluto’s Canada-based mom Nancie Wight decided the terrier would be great at cheering people through quarantine, and thus, a star was born. These days, Pluto Living’s YouTube, Facebook and Instagram pages see over 20 million views per month, with her merchandise, like “Hello. I like fish sticks” T-shirts flying off the shelves.

Pluto herself is apparently very excited about her new venture. “I’m so excited to be working with the amazeballs two-leggeds at The Gotham Group and Sterling Lord Literistic,” she said in a statement. “In the face of a global pandemic, it became quite evident to me that the entire two-legged population was acting out in strange and unusual ways. There was a crisis with the toilet paper, and people were losing their minds. My involvement in keeping people informed and engaged started innocently enough. I just wanted to reach out and remind people that they should not panic. My advice was simple—keeping the bum hairs clipped really, really, really short worked exceptionally well for me. Mentioning where to find snacks, and reminding everyone to social distance (and refrain from sniffing crotches) seemed like pretty standard stuff, but it must have touched some heart chords. By the end of five days, millions of people (and I mean more than 10M!) watched. My mom set me up on the social dog parks so people could adopt the Pluto Living lifestyle.”

Wight was a multi studies lecturer at Concordia University before becoming a content producer and brand manager for Disney, HBO and Deepak Chopra, among others. Following the 2008 recession, she moved into wildlife photography. She also refers to herself as Pluto’s “typist.”

Gotham is currently in production on Netflix’s Wendell & Wild with Jordan Peele, and just wrapped Sorta Like a Rock Star for Netflix, based on the novel by Matthew Quick (Silver Linings Playbook). They have a distribution deal with Fox 21, and are in post-production on the pilot Masters of Doom at USA, based on David Kushner’s novel, and developing Washington Black at Hulu, based on Esi Edugyan’s novel (Anthony Hemingway is directing and EPing, Selwyn Hinds adapting, and Sterling K. Brown producing).

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