Does the dog in After Life belong to Ricky Gervais?

19 January 2022, 15:38

By Alice Dear

Who is the dog in After Life, does she belong to Ricky Gervais and what has the actor said about her?

After Life season three dropped on Netflix earlier this month, marking the return of Ricky Gervais as Tony and Anti as his beloved dog Brandy.

Brandy the dog plays a very important role in the dark-comedy-drama, written by animal-lover Gervais, as she guides her owner through the grief of losing his wife.

In the first series of After Life, it is revealed that Brandy is the reason Tony did not take his own life following his wife's death as she needed feeding at the time.

Throughout the three series, Brandy is Tony's anchor when it comes to travelling through grief, and remains that way until the series finale.

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Gervais and the dog that plays Brandy, Anti, undoubtably have a close bond, a bond which has left many people questioning whether she belongs to the actor.

Does the dog in After Life belong to Ricky Gervais?

No, Anti does not belong to Ricky Gervais.

Anti, a gorgeous German Shepherd, is a trained canine hired to play the role of Brandy in the series.

While not his dog, Ricky has developed a strong bond with the pet, and previously spoke about their emotional goodbyes in-between filming seasons.

Speaking on The Graham Norton Show, Ricky said: "When I said goodbye to the cast and crew on the last day, when I said goodbye to the dog, that's when I nearly cried because I was thinking, she doesn't know why she isn't going to see me."

Now the third and final series has aired, it is likely both Ricky and Anti will be pining over one another.

Does the dog die in After Life?

With the third season of After Life now out on Netflix, many people are concerned that the ending may see the death of Brandy.

However, Ricky has previously confirmed to fans that Brandy does not die in the finale.

Does Ricky Gervais have any pets?

Ricky is the owner of one cat called Pickle.

At the beginning of lockdown in 2020, Gervais sadly had to say goodbye to his beloved cat Ollie, who was 16-years-old.

At the time, the actor and comedian shared a picture on his Instagram of himself with Ollie, writing: "Just had to say goodbye to the sweetest little soul I’ve ever known. RIP Ollie. July 9th 2003 - March 10th 2020."

Following the death, Ricky and his wife Jane started fostering a feline, Pickle, who quickly became a permanent resident at their home.

A matter of days after announcing they were fostering Pickle, Ricky shared a new picture of the feline with the caption: "Quick update on the cat we’re fostering: She keeps getting on my lap and staring at me. We’re keeping her."

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Watch the trailer for season 3 of After Life on Netflix