The French Mastiff or Dogue de Bordeaux has remained unknown to the general public until 1989, when the breed appeared on the big screen alongside Tom Hanks in the comedy film Turner and Hooch. The French Mastiff played a major role in the comedy film, which was directed by Roger Spottiswoode.

In the film, Scott Turner (Tom Hanks) is a detective (and a bit of a neat-freak) who is bound to leave his small town to move to a bigger city. He feels that there’s too little police work in his town and wants to find more opportunities in the bigger Sacramento city in order to get involved in what he considers “real” crime cases. However, three days before he leaves for the city, the usually quiet small town he belongs in got struck by a murder case. The victim is a local man named Amos Reed, a former junkyard owner who also happens to be a good friend of Turner. Upon Reed’s death, his dog named Hooch, a French Mastiff, is left alone. With Reed having no next of kin, Turner decided to take Hooch in, believing that the dog can pinpoint or recognize the murderer of his friend. Turner also decided to stay in his small town, determined to take on Reed’s murder case. Turner pleads with the town’s police chief named Howard Clyde to allow him to solve the murder case.

Upon bringing Hooch home, the dog immediately destroys his household items and his car, turning his neatly organized life completely upside down. His decision to adopt Hooch appeared to become a rude awakening. But, in spite of his life being in shambles after acquiring Hooch, he decided to keep him in after a few failed attempts to give the dog away. Hooch is the closest thing he has to an eye-witness, and is his only ace in the murder case.

One day, Turner decides to bring Hooch with him to the police station so as to spare himself from coming home to destroyed items. Inside the police station, the destructive, brave, and seemingly fearless Hooch suddenly jumped out of the police window upon recognizing a familiar face. While a bit confused, Turner began to suspect the man that Hooch recognized. This recognition sparks a series of events that eventually lead to Turner catching Reed’s murderer and solving the case. Unfortunately, during an exchange between Turner and the suspect, Hooch was wounded and ultimately passed away.

Turner and Hooch movie received a lot of acknowledgement and since then, the French Mastiff made its way to people’s hearts. People started to recognize the breed and were even encouraged to get them as house pets. A few years later, the American Kennel Club officially recognized the French Mastiff. To this day, the numbers of French Mastiff across America is continuously increasing.