Messi, Beloved ‘Anatomy of a Fall’ Dog, Attends His First Oscars Like a Good Boy

Hollywood’s cutest star made it to the 2024 Oscars after all. Messi, the adorable Border Collie who played Snoop in Anatomy of a Fall, was one of the stars sitting inside the Dolby Theatre during the Oscars ceremony on March 10. This marked the precious pup’s first Oscars ceremony.

During Jimmy Kimmel’s Oscars monologue, the host gave Messi a shoutout. The camera panned to Messi, who was sitting quietly in the audience.

“Not even 20 years ago, things weren’t going that great for Robert [Downey Jr.],” Kimmel began. “He played the villain in, correct me if I have this wrong, a movie where Tim Allen turns into a dog, right? And if you ever decide to remake that film, I have just the guy to play Tim Allen. That is, where is he, Messi, who even though he’s a dog, may have given the performance of the year in Anatomy of a Fall. Messi has an overdose scene, if you’ve seen it, you know. It is incredible. Honestly, I haven’t seen a French actor eat vomit like that since Gerard Depardieu.”

In the days leading up to the Oscars, there was speculation that the French canine wouldn’t attend the ceremony at all. Several companies with Oscar-nominated films reportedly complained that Messi’s attendance at the Oscars nominees lunch gave Justine Triet’s crime thriller an “advantage during the voting window,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.

While the canine didn’t receive an acting nomination, Anatomy of a Fall nabbed five Oscar nods, including Best Picture of the Year. In the months leading up to the Oscars, Messi became a Hollywood darling, with stars like Ryan Gosling bonding with the rising star. Messi notably received the Palm Dog Award at the Cannes Film Festival, an award given to the best film performance by a canine.

Messi’s owner and trainer, Laura Martin Contini, revealed that Messi prepared for two months to play dead in one of the French film’s most heartbreaking scenes. “It’s a true profession,” Martin told IndieWire. “Any time you see a dog or an animal on screen, it’s the result of a long process of preparation, even if the dog is just laying down.”

When he’s not captivating Hollywood with those beautiful blue eyes, the Border Collie resides in Paris with Martin.