Paramount has released the first trailer for Heart of the Beast, a survival thriller starring Brad Pitt as a Special Forces veteran stranded in the Alaskan wilderness with his combat dog — and the film lands at a commercially significant moment for Pitt, who is coming off the $634 million global success of F1.
The film, directed by David Ayer and written by Cameron Alexander, centers on former Special Forces officer James Belmont (Pitt) and his retired military dog, Odin, who must battle the elements after a catastrophic plane crash deep in Alaska. J.K. Simmons and Anna Lambe co-star.
The script by Cameron Alexander had previously appeared on a 2017 list of notable unproduced screenplays. Principal photography ran from March to May 2025 in Queenstown, New Zealand — standing in for Alaska — with Pitt boarding the project in January 2025, followed by Simmons in February and Lambe in March.
Ayer has described the film as a small-scale story with a large emotional impact, with the relationship between the man and the dog as its core. He found the right animal essential to the project, wanting the dog to feel like a genuine partner rather than a supporting element.
The film marks the second collaboration between Ayer and Pitt, following Fury in 2014, and also reunites Ayer with J.K. Simmons, whom he previously directed in Harsh Times in 2005. Behind the camera, Damien Chazelle and Olivia Hamilton are among the producers through their Wild Chickens Productions banner, which holds a first-look deal with Paramount. Oscar-winning cinematographer Mauro Fiore, whose credits include Avatar, shot the film.
On its September 25 release date, the film will open against DreamWorks’ animated adventure Forgotten Island and a re-release of Avengers: Endgame. Paramount first showed footage at CinemaCon in April, where Pitt did not appear in person to introduce the film.
