Dogs are amazing, and humans don't deserve them. Almost anyone with a popular social media or dating app account will confirm this. Often representing undying loyalty or friendship, canines have been gracing the silver screen since the British short film Rescued by Rover in 1905.

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Dogs are descended from wolves, so while they can be cuddly, friendly, and playful, they can also be violent and vicious predators. So, to honor cinema's toughest four-legged friends, we're recognizing those that stood out as particularly badass. To pay respect to hard-working dog actors, we'll stick to live-action dogs for this list, so our apologies to Fluffy from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001).

Baxter - Anchorman (2004)

This Border Terrier plays the beloved best friend to Ron Burgundy in Anchorman (2004) and carries on complete conversations with his master throughout the movie. After Baxter is punted into a river by an enraged motorcyclist (Jack Black), Ron spirals into a glass case of emotion that ultimately results in the loss of his job.

So, what puts Baxter on this list? Aside from the fact that he survives the assault and finds his way back to Ron, Baxter truly earns his badass title when he jumps into a habitat of Kodiak bears to defend his master, then saves the day by facing down an angry bear without blinking.

Toto - The Wizard Of Oz (1939)

Perhaps no dog has ever rolled with more punches in a movie than Toto in The Wizard of Oz (1939). Like his human, Dorothy (Judy Garland), Toto endures a tornado and a flying monkey attack, not to mention he exposes the Wizard as a fraud.

The defiant Cairn Terrier had a badass reputation back in Kansas before his trip to Oz, as Almira Gulch (Margaret Hamilton) wanted him dead for biting her leg. He's able to escape before she has him killed, foreshadowing his future escape from the Wicked Witch of the West (also Hamilton) to fetch Dorothy's friends after she's captured.

Bow - Snatch (2000)

D'ya like dags? While the name of the Staffordshire Bull Terrier in Guy Ritchie's Snatch (2000) is never clearly named in the movie, the canine actor's name was Bow. Traded in a business deal to a trio of small-time crooks by Irish Travellers, Bow runs away and eventually returns to rescue the story's protagonists in the nick of time.

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Throughout the movie, the pooch aids a robbery and dodges bullets, but considering he's able to ingest a squeaky toy and a diamond the size of a fist without harming himself, the most badass thing about Bow is his stomach.

The Bueller's Rottweiler - Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)

Another canine that goes unnamed despite its heroic attempts, the Bueller family's dog defends its masters' house with fierce tenacity when Principal Ed Rooney (Jeffrey Jones) tries to break in while attempting to prove Ferris (Matthew Broderick) is playing hooky in Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986).

The intimidating Rottweiler loses a few badass points for being outsmarted and drugged by the idiotic intruder, but the pooch earns them back when it wakes up and gets satisfying revenge after Ferris's sister (Jennifer Grey) returns home to save the day and send Rooney's wallet literally to the dog.

Buddy - Air Bud (1997)

What's more badass than a dog who can dunk? Okay, so he only dunks on the movie's poster, but the Golden Retriever that debuted in Air Bud (1997) has a jump shot that would make Larry Bird's jaw drop, not to mention he played relentlessly physical defense.

Unquestionably the most athletic dog in cinema history, the ability to run on four legs gave Buddy a huge speed advantage against the middle school kids he competed against, and he never let his lack of height or opposable thumbs limit his game. Buddy went on to dominate in football, soccer, baseball, and volleyball before retiring to raise five puppies.

Sofia's Malinoises - John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum (2019)

Publishing a list with the words "movie," "dogs," and "badass" in the title without including the John Wick franchise is not only a breach of cinema code, it's a good way to get a bounty on your head from the High Table. While Wick's (Keanu Reeves) dogs are important throughout the trilogy, it's a pair of pups belonging to his ally Sofia (Halle Berry) that prove to be the most badass in John Wick: Chapter 3 (2019).

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Fans of the franchise will be on edge any time a dog's in a scene and will be especially concerned when one of Sofia's dogs is shot. Thanks to a bulletproof vest, the dog pops back up unscathed and assists his master in a few more kills.

Buck - The Call Of The Wild (1972)

As previously stated, we're sticking to live-action dogs for this list, so apologies to the animators behind this year's remake, but that doesn't mean we can't honor the German Shepherd that played Buck almost fifty years ago in The Call of the Wild (1972).

Abducted from his family and forced to become a sled dog in the frozen Yukon region of Canada, Buck meets and befriends prospector John Thornton (Charlton Heston). Buck proves his badassery and then some by enduring incredibly harsh weather and elements, surviving fights, and proving that those who mess with his master will pay for it with their lives.

Hercules - The Sandlot (1993)

Known among the local kids as "The Beast", Hercules serves as the antagonist of the classic baseball movie The Sandlot (1993). According to urban legend, The Beast was a junkyard dog that was fed enormous amounts of meat until he became a massive monster that ate 173 people, causing police to ensure the dog would remain chained up forever.

After failing in several attempts to retrieve a baseball from The Beast's yard, Benny "The Jet" Rodriguez (Mike Vitar) attempts to take the Mastiff on by himself. Though the actual Beast doesn't quite live up to the legend, the resulting chase scene is thrilling, funny, and badass.

Brandy - Once Upon A Time... In Hollywood (2019)

Viewers are introduced to Brandy the pit bull when she greets stuntman Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt) with a friendly and slobbery tackle and face licking in Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood (2019). Hungrily waiting to eat dinner while her master prepares his own, Brandy's strict discipline and loyalty are on display early in the story.

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She may not seem badass in her introductory scene, but (SPOILERS) those qualities result in Brandy saving the day in the end when on command she viciously attacks and disarms the murderous hippies that break into the home of Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio), ultimately saving the life of Sharon Tate. If only history had really gone that way.

Cujo - Cujo (1983)

Featuring the most graphic and terrifying scenes of dog-on-human violence of any movie on this list, Cujo (1983) tells the story of a friendly St. Bernard that becomes infected with rabies after being bitten by a bat, causing him to develop into a vicious and violent killing machine.

There have been a lot of badass dogs on this list, but when those dogs go to sleep at night, it's with Cujo that their nightmares are haunted with. Based on Stephen King's horror novel that won the 1982 British Fantasy Award, the famous author called the movie a terrific adaptation of his work.

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