The dribbling doggie is bounding back to movie theaters in 2026 with &34;Air Bud Returns.&34; Air Bud Returns casting call offers golden opportunity for charism

The dribbling doggie is bounding back to movie theaters in 2026 with "Air Bud Returns."

Air Bud Returns casting call offers golden opportunity for charismatic canines

The dribbling doggie is bounding back to movie theaters in 2026 with "Air Bud Returns."

By Kristen Baldwin

Kristen Baldwin

Kristen Baldwin is the TV critic for EW

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Published on August 8, 2025 11:23AM EDT

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Buddy, the golden retriever, playing basketball in 'Air Bud'. Credit:

Buena Vista Pictures/Courtesy Everett

Are people always telling you your canine has a lot of charisma? Do you think your pooch should be in pictures? If you answered yes — and if your dog is a purebred golden retriever — then we've got good news.

Two weeks after revealing that the basketball playing pup will be back in the 2026 film *Air Bud Returns*, Robert Vince — the creator/producer of the 14-film franchise — announced a nationwide open casting call for their next good boy.

"For the first time ever, we're opening up the auditions for the next Air Bud," said Vince in a video posted Friday to the Air Bud TV YouTube page. The film's lead animal trainer, Mark Forbes, noted that dogs interested in trying out need to be purebred golden retrievers, athletic, and "ideally, he would love basketball, just like the original Air Bud." Watch the announcement below.

First released in 1997, *Air Bud* told the story of Josh Framm (Kevin Zegers), a little boy who discovers an abandoned golden retriever who somehow knows how to play basketball. The movie went on to spawn multiple sequels and spinoffs, featuring golden retrievers playing soccer, baseball, volleyball, and even traveling into space.

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According to a press release, *Air Bud Returns* will follow a 12-year-old boy named Jacob who "has always dreamt of being a star basketball player. After the passing of his father, that dream felt even more impossible. But everything changes when he and his mom move into his dad's childhood home in Fernfield. There, Jacob discovers an original VHS of the *Air Bud* movie in his father's belongings and has a chance meeting of a neglected golden retriever he names Buddy. Together, they embark on a journey of healing, unite a team of misfits, and chase a championship. Through it all they learn to play from the heart, believe in each other, and always take the shot!"

Air Bud Returns poster.

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The original Air Bud was played by Buddy, a golden retriever from California who was rescued as a stray by Kevin di Cicco in 1989. After appearing on *America's Funniest Home Videos* and *Late Night with David Letterman*, Buddy was cast as the basketball-playing pooch in the original film. Buddy sired nine puppies before his death in 1998.**

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Source: "AOL Movies"

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