Horror fans, breathe. The one question everyone keeps asking about 'Good Boy' has an answer, and it comes straight from the guy who made it.
So... does the dog die?
Director Ben Leonberg told Cinemablend that Indy, the canine star of 'Good Boy,' makes it out alive. No hedging, no coy marketing tease. He even compared it to the unspoken contract of 'Mission: Impossible' movies: you know Tom Cruise is not going out like that, but the movie still sells the danger.
"Tom Cruise isn't gonna die, but the filmmaking still has to let you think he might fall off that airplane and die potentially for real when you're watching Mission: Impossible."
That is Leonberg's way of saying: yes, Indy survives, but the movie is still going to mess with your nerves. And if you felt a little cursed by horror's usual 'the dog never makes it past Act 1' pattern, Leonberg knows the trope. He points out that this film is actually about Indy, which means that story gets far more attention than the genre usually allows.
The internet made it the top question
Since the trailer dropped, the main search-term gravitational pull has been 'does the dog die.' Leonberg says the team was surprised by just how fast and how intensely people fixated on Indy's fate, but he calls the reaction delightful and loves that viewers are already invested in the dog's story and outcome. Honestly, fair.
The basics
- 'Good Boy' opens in US theaters on Friday, October 3, 2025.
- Directed by Ben Leonberg, who confirmed Indy the dog survives the ending.
- The Mission: Impossible comparison is intentional: stakes without actual fatality for the star.
- Cast includes Arielle Friedman, Larry Fessenden, Anya Krawcheck, and more.
Bottom line: the dog lives, the tension lives with him, and the movie seems fully aware that Indy is the draw. If you were holding off because you did not want that particular heartbreak, you can safely buy a ticket.