New Hope cancels ‘A Dog’s Purpose’ screenings

This image released by Universal Pictures shows Dennis Quaid with a dog, voiced by Josh Gad, in a scene from 'A Dog's Purpose.' A spokesman for American Humane said Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2017 that it has suspended its safety representative who worked on the set of the film when a frightened German shepherd, not shown, was forced into churning waters. (Joe Lederer / Universal Pictures via AP)

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A local dog rescue group will not go ahead with a movie fundraiser this weekend in light of controversy surrounding the film.

New Hope Dog Rescue was planning a number of screenings of the film, “A Dog’s Purpose,” next week but elected to cancel the viewings after a controversial video showing a distressed German shepherd being forced into turbulent water surfaced, courtesy TMZ.

The rescue group was granted early access to the film after Universal Studios gave animal-related charities a chance to fundraise with pre-screenings of the movie before it hit theatres.

After the TMZ footage surfaced, Cineplex announced it would be refunding all pre-purchased tickets for the film.

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A dog is seen during the filming of 'A Dog's Purpose' near Winnipeg in this 2015 handout photo taken from video footage provided to TMZ. (THE CANADIAN PRESS / HO - TMZ)