# K-9 (film)
**K-9** is a 1989 American [buddy cop](https://www.edgepedia.org/buddy-cop) comedy directed by Rod Daniel, starring James Belushi as a San Diego narcotics detective named Michael Dooley who is assigned a German shepherd [police dog](https://www.edgepedia.org/police-dog), Jerry Lee, as his partner while pursuing the drug lord Ken Lyman.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58128-K-9) • [2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/k9) Produced by the Gordon Company and distributed by [Universal Pictures](https://www.edgepedia.org/universal-pictures), it opened on April 28, 1989 and earned $43,247,647 domestically and $78,247,647 worldwide.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58128-K-9) • [3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0097637/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | April 28, 1989 (United States), Universal Pictures; PG-13, 102 minutes[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58128-K-9) |
| Director and writers | Rod Daniel; screenplay by Steven Siegel and Scott Myers[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58128-K-9) |
| Cast | James Belushi (Dooley), Mel Harris (Tracy), Kevin Tighe (Lyman), Ed O'Neill (Brannigan), and the German shepherd Jerry Lee, played by Rando[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58128-K-9) • [4](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097637/fullcredits/) |
| Box office | $7,471,035 opening weekend; $43,247,647 domestic (55.3%); $78,247,647 worldwide[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0097637/) |
| Critical reception | 36% on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer (11 reviews); Metascore 44, "Mixed or Average"[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/k9) • [5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/k-9/critic-reviews/) |
| Sequels | K-911 (1999) and K-9: P.I. (2002), both direct-to-video releases starring Belushi[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58128-K-9) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
Dooley is a headstrong detective who likes to work alone. While building a case against Lyman, a prominent figure in a $50 million cocaine operation, his boss assigns him a partner: Jerry Lee, a superbly trained German shepherd with what the studio's synopsis calls the best nose in the drug-busting business. The pairing pleases neither partner at first, since the dog takes pleasure in destroying Dooley's possessions, but after shootouts, stakeouts, brawls, and romantic misadventures the two develop a grudging respect, and Jerry Lee's sniffing skills crack the case.[6](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/k-9) • [2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/k9)
### Sequels
The film's success produced two sequels starring James Belushi, K-911 (1999) and K-9: P.I. (2002), both released direct to home video; Universal later packaged the three films as the DVD collection K-9: The Patrol Pack (2004).[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58128-K-9) • [12](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/k-9-the-patrol-pack)
## Production
The script's path to the screen began with a pseudonym. When 20th Century Fox received the screenplay by first-time writers "Andrew Charles" and Scott Myers in early 1987, the studio did not like the writing but loved the concept; "Andrew Charles" was in fact Steve Siegel, an assistant to a Fox executive. Fox offered $30,000 for the first draft, a bidding war followed, and Universal Pictures won with $300,000 plus an additional $300,000 payable if the film was produced.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58128-K-9)
[Principal photography](https://www.edgepedia.org/principal-photography) was scheduled to begin in August 1988, and filming wrapped after two months of shooting in San Diego, California. The production employed 2,016 San Diego locals and spent upward of $3.1 million in the area.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58128-K-9)
**Casting the dog.** The search for Jerry Lee began in 1987. Gail Mooring of K-9 Paws, the film's technical advisor, bought four German shepherds in [West Germany](https://www.edgepedia.org/west-germany) for $10,000 after failing to find the right dog in the United States, and the role went to one of them, named Rando.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58128-K-9) A separate dog, Koton, a real Kansas City Police Department K-9, served as a stunt double for some scenes; Koton was killed in the line of duty in 1991, which has led to confusion that "the dog from K-9" died on duty.[7](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097637)
## Reception and box office
K-9 opened domestically on April 28, 1989 with $7,471,035 and went on to gross $43,247,647 in the United States, 55.3% of its $78,247,647 worldwide total.[3](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0097637/) The American Film Institute catalog records that despite mixed reviews the film grossed $40 million by June 1989.[1](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58128-K-9)
Critical response was mixed to negative. On Rotten Tomatoes the film holds 36% from 11 critics, with 4 fresh and 7 rotten; audiences rate it 44% on the Popcornmeter from more than 50,000 ratings.[2](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/k9) Metacritic assigns a Metascore of 44 based on 11 critics, categorized as mixed or average, with 1 positive, 6 mixed, and 4 negative reviews.[5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/k-9/critic-reviews/)
Reviewers divided over the dog and the script. Roger Ebert, film critic of the [Chicago Sun-Times](https://www.edgepedia.org/chicago-sun-times), gave it two of four stars, writing that the film starts as a standard drug movie and ends with so many monologues to the dog that "the dialogue coach must have needed a pooper scooper," while objecting to editing and training tricks that make the dog appear to understand English.[8](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/k-9-1989) The Los Angeles Times's Kevin Thomas scored it 70, crediting the charismatic duo and Rod Daniel's comedy pacing; the Washington Post allowed that "the movie would roll over and play dead without the talented German shepherd"; and the [Chicago Tribune](https://www.edgepedia.org/chicago-tribune) judged that its moments of hilarity were due entirely to the dog.[5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/k-9/critic-reviews/)
## Place among 1989 dog buddy pictures
K-9 was one of two prominent cop-and-dog comedies released in 1989, the other being Disney's Turner & Hooch with [Tom Hanks](https://www.edgepedia.org/tom-hanks), which arrived in July, three months after K-9.[9](https://www.qwipster.net/k9.html) The near-simultaneous pairing has made the two frequent comparison points; a Metacritic user review calls K-9 a film that "feels like a rip off" of [Turner & Hooch](https://www.edgepedia.org/turner-and-hooch), while the two differ in tone, with Turner & Hooch carrying a sad ending.[10](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/k-9/) The formula later resurfaced in films such as Muzzle (2023), a police drama about an officer and his K-9 partner.[11](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/muzzle)
## References
1. [K-9 (1989), AFI Catalog of Feature Films](https://catalog.afi.com/Film/58128-K-9)
2. [K-9, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/k9)
3. [K-9 (1989), Box Office Mojo](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0097637/)
4. [K-9 (1989) - Full cast & crew - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097637/fullcredits/)
5. [K-9 Critic Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/k-9/critic-reviews/)
6. [K-9, Universal Pictures At Home](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/k-9)
7. [K-9 (1989), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097637)
8. [K-9 movie review, RogerEbert.com (April 28, 1989)](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/k-9-1989)
9. [K-9 (1989) review, Qwipster's Movie Reviews](https://www.qwipster.net/k9.html)
10. [K-9 Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/k-9/)
11. [Muzzle, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/muzzle)
12. [K-9: The Patrol Pack, Universal Pictures At Home](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/k-9-the-patrol-pack)
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