When Tom Hardy was filming Lawless in Atlanta, he spotted a homeless dog running loose on the highway and sprang into action — catching the dog, naming him Woodstock (or “Woody,” for short), and taking him home to London.
Now, Hardy is encouraging everyone to find their own “biggest fan.”
“To me, a dog actually is the heart of a family in many ways, in life,” Hardy told New York magazine in the fall. “A dog is important because its unconditional love is there … If a dog is there, and a dog is happy, then you know it’s a happy home.”
Not every dog is as lucky as Woody. Every year, 6 to 8 million dogs and cats end up in U.S. animal shelters, and half of them have to be euthanized simply because there aren’t enough good homes. Countless more end up on the street, where they may starve, freeze, get hit by cars, or suffer from other abuses. That’s why Hardy and PETA — whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way” — are encouraging caring people to adopt from local shelters and never buy from breeders or pet stores, which only exacerbate the homeless animal overpopulation crisis.
Hardy isn’t Woodstock’s only famous friend. Vegan actor and Lawless co-star Jessica Chastain was with Hardy when he found Woody, and her mom helped take care of him until he was cleared to be moved to the U.K.
Tom Hardy is part of a growing list of celebrities — including Anjelica Huston, Pink, Charlize Theron, Joaquin Phoenix, and Eva Mendes — who have teamed up with PETA to promote kindness to animals.
Source: PETA
