The Call of the Wild (2020)
12-month trend
12-month trend
Monthly article views
2025-09 to 2026-08
A dog's life-altering journey begins when he is stolen from his home in California and sent to the Yukon.
The story
Set during the 1890s Klondike Gold Rush, the film follows a dog named Buck as he is stolen from his home in California and sent to the Yukon. There, he befriends an old outdoorsman and begins a life-altering adventure. After being sold to a mail runner, Buck must navigate the harsh wilderness and the challenges of the Yukon. He joins a team of sled dogs, where he must prove his worth and find his place in the wild while navigating the dangers of the northern frontier.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In the late 19th century, Buck, a Saint Bernard and Scotch Shepherd mix, lives in California before being abducted and shipped to the Yukon. He is sold to a mail runner, Perrault, and joins a team of sled dogs. Buck eventually becomes the pack leader after a confrontation with Spitz. Later, the dogs are sold to a mean-spirited gold prospector named Hal, who works them to exhaustion. Buck is rescued by a frontiersman, John Thornton, and the two form a bond while traveling through the wilderness. Buck eventually finds himself torn between his life with Thornton and the call of the wild, specifically a female white wolf. After Thornton is killed by Hal, Buck kills Hal and ultimately joins the wolf pack as their leader.
- First release year
- 2020
- Runtime (minutes)
- 100
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Chris Sanders
- Writers
- Michael Green · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Harrison Ford · John Thornton; Omar Sy · Perrault; Dan Stevens · Hal; Karen Gillan · Mercedes; Bradley Whitford · Judge Miller; Cara Gee · Françoise; Jean Louisa Kelly · Katie Miller; Colin Woodell · Charles; Michael Horse · Edenshaw; Terry Notary · Buck
- Genres
- adventure; children's; drama
- Themes
- survival; nature vs. domestication; loyalty
- Tone and mood
- earnest; adventurous
- Premise and plot tags
- animal adventure; historical fiction; survival
- Source material / true-story basis
- 1903 novel by Jack London
- Reception
- The film received mixed-to-positive reviews from critics, who praised the lead performance and score but criticized the CGI animals.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 63% · scale: percentage · review count: 208; Metacritic · score: 48 · scale: 100 · review count: 44; PostTrak · score: 4 · scale: 5 · review count: 59% of people surveyed
- Production trivia
- The production used computer animation to create a realistic version of the dog 'Buck'.; The film's release was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
Your lists
Loading your lists…