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Hachi: A Dog's Tale

FILM · 2009 · UK

Hachi: A Dog's Tale

Directed by
Lasse Hallström
Runtime
93 min
Studio
Scion Films, Stage 6 Films, Inferno Distribution

31 archived facts 5 topics 1 source Last reviewed Nov 2026

Professor Wilson discovers a lost Akita puppy on his way home. Despite objections from his wife, Hachi endears himself to the family and grows to be Parker's loyal companion. As their bond grows deeper, a beautiful relationship unfolds.

  • Hachi: A Dog's Tale — production image

31 Interesting Facts About Hachi: A Dog's Tale

Interesting Facts (13)

  1. #001

    On May 19, 2012, a bronze statue of the Japanese dog Hachiko was unveiled at the train depot at Woonsocket Depot Square where the film was shot. It is an exact replica of the bronze statue of Hachiko which resides in front of Shibuya Station in Japan.

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  2. #002

    Hachi is a Japanese Akita/Akita Ainu from the mountainous northern regions of Japan.

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  3. #003

    The film's foreign box office returns total $46.7 million as of January 2011.

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  4. #004

    Hachi was adopted another name by the Japanese, of "Chuken Hachiko", which literally means, "loyal dog Hachiko"

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  5. #005

    The film was given a UK theatrical release on March 12, 2010, courtesy of Entertainment Film Distributors, and opened in over 25 countries throughout 2009 and 2010.

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  6. #006

    Hachi: A Dog's Tale premiered at the Seattle International Film Festival on June 13, 2009, and its first theatrical release was in Japan on August 8.

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  7. #007

    Jason Alexander voiced a dog named Lil Lighting in Disney's 101 Dalmatians 2: Patch's London Adventure (2002).

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  8. #008

    After Hachiko's Master died, Hachiko was taken in by the Gardener of the Ueno family.

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  9. #009
    Contains a major spoiler — show

    On the 90th death anniversary of professor Ueno and 80th death anniversary of Hachiko, the University of Tokyo's agriculture erected another bronze statue that reunited Hachiko with his owner.

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  10. #010

    After Hachiko's master died, Hachiko was taken in by the Ueno family's gardener.

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  11. #011

    When Parker searches the internet for information about the Akita, he comes across a 1924 photograph of Ueno and Hachiko.

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  12. #012

    Cary Tagawa argues that they are "very Japanese because they are not overly affectionate, not overly expressive, but they have a deep focus and intuition."

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  13. #013

    As of January 2011, the film's overseas box office revenue totaled 46.7 million dollars.

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Production Story (3)

  1. #014

    After the successful release of the original Japanese film, The Story of Hachikō (1987), Richard Gere was looking for a project to helm that he could watch alongside his young son Homer, and an American adaptation would fit the bill.

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  2. #015

    Hachi: A Dog's Tale is a 2009 American drama film and a remake of Kaneto Shindo's 1987 Japanese film Hachiko Monogatari. The original film told the true story of the Akita dog named Hachiko who lived in Japan 1923-1935. This film is an American adaptation of true story set in 1985 Japan about a professor and his devoted dog. This version, which places it in a modern American context, was directed by Lasse Hallstrom, written by Stephen P. Lindsey and Kaneto Shindo, and produced by Richard Gere, Bill Johnson and Vicki Shigekuni Wong. The film stars Gere, Joan Allen, Sarah Roemer, Jason Alexander and Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa.

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  3. #016

    Hachi: A Dog's Tale premiered at the Seattle International Film Festival on June 13, 2009, and its first theatrical release was in Japan on August 8, 2009. The film was given a UK theatrical release on March 12, 2010, courtesy of Entertainment Film Distributors, and opened in more than 60 countries throughout 2009 and 2010. By the end of September 2010, the film's foreign box office returns had totalled more than $45 million. Sony Pictures Entertainment decided to forgo a U.S. theatrical release, bringing the film out on DVD on March 9, 2010 and eventually selling it to the Hallmark Channel, where it debuted on September 26, 2010.

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Behind the Scenes (8)

  1. #017

    American Humane Association monitored the animal action. No animals were harmed. (AHAD 01142)

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  2. #018

    To age Hachi, in addition to using makeup to dull the colors of his coat, tiny weights were used to make his ears and tail droop.

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  3. #019

    The puppy found at the start of the movie is not an Akita but actually a Shiba Inu.

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  4. #020

    The majority of filming took place in Bristol, Rhode Island, and Woonsocket, Rhode Island.

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  5. #021

    After filming ended, Chico was adopted by coach Mark Harden, whose team trained the dogs in the film.

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  6. #022

    Richard Gere said "These are not the kind of dogs you can buy with treats, they either like you or they don't. An Akita makes a connection or it doesn't. Akitas are very discerning and particular dogs and the trainers were very apprehensive about me meeting the dogs because these dogs make up their mind right away and if they don't like you, there is no going back."

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  7. #023

    According to the American Humane Society guidelines: Puppies tire easily, are vulnerable to the cold and need to be rotated regularly. Also, The little guys need a lot of rest so Wardrobe helped us out and made a little jacket with warmers inside, the same color as the puppies coat.

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  8. #024

    Hachi is portrayed by three dogs: Chico, Layla, and Forrest.

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Characters & Cast (1)

  1. #025

    Cary Tagawa supports that they are "very Japanese in that they are not overly affectionate, not overly expressive, but have a deep focus and intuition that I relate to because I am Japanese."

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Easter Eggs & References (6)

  1. #026

    The baseball game that Parker watches with Hachi is Game 6 of the 1996 World Series, which the New York Yankees beat the Atlanta Braves 3-2 to win their 22nd World Series championship.

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  2. #027

    Parker uses Netscape 3.0 on Mac OS (classic) to browse the Internet on October 26, 1996, the date of the sixth game of the 1996 World Series. This is historically correct as the browser was released on August 19, 1996. The websites that he visits appear to be large static images, which contain the whole page pre-rendered separately.

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  3. #028

    During the film, sounds from European birds (e.g. Common Wood Pigeon, Common blackbird) can sometimes be heard in the background in the spring season scenes (where Parker and Cate work in the garden).

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  4. #029

    When Parker searches information about Akita on Internet, he comes across a picture of Ueno and Hachiko from 1924.

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  5. #030

    This movie reunites Richard Gere and Jason Alexander since they both appeared in Pretty Woman.

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  6. #031

    According to the movie's closing cards the real Hachiko died in March 1934. The earlier movie, Hachiko Monogatari, and other sources state that he died in March 1935 (9 years and 9 months after Professor Ueno's death).

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Sources & editorial notes

Reference databases

  • Wikipedia English Wikipedia article
  • IMDb IMDb title page (trivia)

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