Oscars 2012: The Artist's Dog Uggie Banned From Ceremony
The Weinstein Company say the 10-year-old terrier had "not been asked to participate or appear at the Oscars".
He was undoubtedly one of the stars of the film but Uggie, the Jack Russell dog heavily featured in Michael Hazanavicius' masterpiece The Artist, has been banned from appearing at the Oscars. A spokesperson for distributors The Weinstein Company revealed that the "retired" 10-year-old terrier had "not been asked to participate or appear at the Oscars", taking place February 26th, 2012. Despite hanging up his performing days (he also appeared in last year's Water For Elephants), Uggie had made several public appearances in the run-up to the Oscar ceremony, where The Artist is expected to win the majority of the 10 awards it has been nominated for, including 'Best Picture'. The Artist took seven awards from the BAFTAs this past Sunday including Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor for Jean Dujardin, Best Original Screenplay, Original Music, Cinematography and Best Costume Design. There had been reports previous that Uggie was training with host Billy Crystal in preparation for a special performance at the Oscars ceremony but clearly that ain't happening now. This past Monday Uggie, who plays Jack in the black-and-white silent film, won the 'Best Dog in a Theatrical Film' award at the Golden Collar awards, a brand new ceremony recognising Hollywood's canine stars and those who train them!