Furry friend Messi, who starred as Snoop the dog in Anatomy of a Fall, is the first one to greet me into the room where he’s participating in interviews. The border collie rushes to the door as soon as I walk in; he smiles up at me, as if to say, “Welcome in! I have just met you, and I love you.” Immediately, it’s easy to see why this pup has won over stars like Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, and pretty much the entire class of this year’s Oscar nominees.
The 7-year-old pooch won rave reviews for his performance in Justine Triet’s Palme d’Or-winning movie, which is also nominated for Oscars like Best Picture, Best Actress, and Best Original Screenplay, but, sadly, not Best Original Dog. The Academy has yet to add any category to recognize performances such as Messi’s. Luckily, his handler, Laura Martin, has a suggestion to remedy that.
“There’s no award for the pet, but maybe there should be some recognition for the trainers, because it is a profession,” Martin tells The Daily Beast’s Obsessed through an interpreter, Frederic Cassidy, while on a press tour around Los Angeles with Messi. “It is something that takes a lot of work to accomplish. Behind every great pet is a great trainer. Maybe that’s a starting point.”
Speaking of the Academy Awards, Messi just had the opportunity to schmooze with a handful of nominees at the annual Oscar Nominees Luncheon that took place on Monday. Messi was the bell of the ball, meeting folks like America Ferrera and Billie Eilish.
But Messi caused quite the stir when he scared Gosling senseless. Martin was helping Messi act out his big scene in Anatomy of a Fall when the blunder occurred. In the film, young Daniel (Milo Machado-Graner) feeds Snoop, his guide dog, a handful of aspirin to see if Snoop gets sick and passes out, like he did when he accidentally ate Daniel’s father Samuel’s (Samuel Theis) vomit years ago. If it does, it may confirm that Samuel had attempted to overdose on pills before he ultimately meets his death (potentially by suicide, but also maybe by murder) in the film.
When stars began asking Martin how she taught Messi to perform the scene, the handler found a solution. “Because [my] English is not 100-percent, and they were asking about that scene, I thought, ‘Well, why don’t we just have Messi reenact it?’” Martin says. “As he was laying on the floor, and I was picking him up and tending to him as if he was not well, Ryan Gosling saw that and was totally worried. He was like, ‘Is he okay?!’ And I was like, ‘Yes! He’s just an actor.’”
Yet even if he’s not a nominee himself, Messi may have a chance to be reunited with all of his new famous friends during the Oscars, Martin says. Although nothing is solidified, there’s a possibility the pup will score an invite to Hollywood’s biggest night.
“There’s a small chance that Messi will walk down the red carpet, but that’s not decided yet,” Martin says. “So we’re going to play it by ear. But it might happen!”
After all, Messi is part of an ensemble that’s up for Best Picture. In fact, he was the first actor listed in the credits, ahead of human co-stars like Sandra Hüller (nominated for Best Actress), Swann Arlaud, and Machado-Graner.
“I had no idea that the dog would be listed with the cast of humans,” Martin says. “It was a great honor. It was a surprise! It shows how Justine considered the dog as a character, equal to the others.”
This honor was totally deserved, considering Messi put so much effort into becoming Snoop. He’s embodied the role so much, Martin says, that he now responds to “Snoop” as his second name.
“He accepted that people around him were calling him ‘Snoop,’” Martin says. Alas, that’s probably because he’s such a good boy who responds to any and all commands. “If someone says ‘Snoop, come here,’ he’s responding to ‘come here.’ You can call him anything you want, so long as there’s the command attached to it.”
After his major success with Anatomy of a Fall, Martin says the sky’s the limit for Messi. He’s still getting used to fame, but after that, she has big plans for his future. “A big American movie, an action movie,” Martin suggests. “That’s the next step, since he speaks all languages.”
Martin stresses that dogs and other animals are extremely important to the filmmaking process—they can really make or break a scene. Filming and watching Anatomy of a Fall made her realize this truth, but seeing the response to Messi’s big scene has really hammered home that message.
“It’s such a powerful thing when you have a pet as a character, and you see the love that’s shared in the relationship between the character and the pet,” Martin says. “Especially if there’s a death of a dog. [Pets are] so innocent. It can provide such a deep experience for a story.”
As Messi drifts off to sleep, probably dreaming about Gosling’s shocked face or the red carpet, we end on the most important question: Does the pup think Sandra killed her husband, or is she innocent?
“Messi knows who did it,” Martin says. “But he will never say.”
