Hotel for Dogs (film)

Hotel for Dogs is a 2009 American family comedy film directed by Thor Freudenthal, based on the 1971 novel by Lois Duncan. Starring Emma Roberts, Jake T. Austin, Kyla Pratt, Lisa Kudrow, Kevin Dillon and Don Cheadle, the film tells the story of two orphaned siblings living in foster care who secretly take in stray dogs along with their family dog at a vacant hotel.

Shooting began in November 2007 and took place in the cities of Los Angeles and Universal City, California. The dogs in the film were trained for several months before shooting began. Nearly eighty boys auditioned for the role of Bruce before Austin was ultimately selected.

Hotel for Dogs was released in the United States on January 16, 2009, by DreamWorks Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies. It received mixed reviews from critics, and was a box office success, grossing $117 million on a $35 million budget.