Why Hawkeye's Lucky The Pizza Dog Is The Best Marvel Character

If you are a Marvel fan, you have probably already watched the first three episodes of “Hawkeye,” available on Disney +. If you haven’t had the chance — here’s a quick rundown. Clint Barton, AKA Hawkeye, AKA Ronin (Jeremy Renner), goes on a trip to New York with his three children to see a Broadway performance of “Rogers: The Musical.” While he is in NYC, Kate Bishop (Hailee Steinfeld), who is a massive Hawkeye fan and incredible archer, accidentally makes enemies with the Tracksuit Mafia. While escaping the criminals, Kate runs into a Golden Retriever, who happens to have one eye and a love for pizza. She decides to take the pup home with her, and he is eventually named Lucky the Pizza Dog. Collider reported that the precious pup “first appears in Hawkeye (Vol. 4) #1,” where Clint saves the pooch and decides to call him Luck. Hawkeye (Vol. 4) #11 is entirely focused on the canine companion, who “refers to himself as Pizza-Dog,” due to his passion for Italian cuisine.

According to Collider, the very good boy is portrayed by a four-year-old dog named Jolt. While speaking to Marvel.com in December 2021, the show’s executive producer Trinh Tran explained how the Golden Retriever was chosen for the role.

“We had several dogs; we had photos and we put the dogs on tape in terms of what they can do [laughs].We went on from there, trying to really figure out which is the best dog to play Pizza Dog. And Jolt, our amazing dog on set, was cast for it,” explained Tran.

Photo by Shayna Douglas on Unsplash

During the Marvel.com interview, Hailee Steinfeld shared how she felt having Jolt as a co-star.

“It was so fun; I am such a dog lover. The minute I knew Pizza Dog was as much a part of this show as he is, I was very excited. It was definitely a challenge; the dog is unbelievably well-trained — do not get me wrong — but it is a dog. When it sees a squirrel, it wants to have a moment with the squirrel,” said the 24-year-old actress.

Jeremy Renner also shared kind words about the adorable Golden Retriever.

“The dog couldn't be cuter. I ended up really liking the dog. I'm not sure if [Clint’s] supposed to be [friendly] towards him. I was just sitting down and he's by me, he's looking at me cute. Hot breath coming on me. He was a wonderful contribution to the show. He’s a good boy,” asserted the actor.

If you want to see more of Jolt be sure to watch “Hawkeye,” with new episodes premiering every Wednesday on Disney Plus. You can also check out the pup’s Instagram account, which has 20,000 followers.