PETA boycotts 'A Dog's Purpose' over video of German Shepherd forced into rushing water

A video that shows a dog being forced into raging waters on a movie set has PETA pretty upset.

TMZ posted the footage just days before the release of the supposedly dog-loving flick A Dog's Purpose.

Filmed in Winnipeg, Canada, the scene of a German Shepherd named Hercules being pulled and pushed into a stream of turbulent water is a stark contrast to the film's movie poster showing a grinning Dennis Quaid snuggling up to his furry friend. CBS News even once called the film "the movie for anyone who's ever loved and lost a dog."

In the video, a voice is heard casually narrating the scene. "Well, he ain't going to calm down until he goes in the water," the voice is heard saying as the dog continues to resist.

"Just got to throw him in," the unidentified voice says, as the handler picks up the dog and puts his rear legs into the water. When the dog continues to clamor away from the stormy waters, the handler finally just pushes the lower half of the dog's body into the water.

[Warning: The video below may be disturbing to some viewers.]

Later, the dog is seen completely submerged in the rushing waters. At that moment, a number of people on set begin shouting and running toward the dog.

The video drew the outrage of plenty of people online.

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Still, Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment defended the on-set treatment of Hercules, calling the film "a celebration of the special connection between humans and their dogs." The set was ensured to be "an ethical and safe environment for the animals," according to a statement from Amblin Partners.

"While we continue to review the circumstances shown in the edited footage, Amblin is confident that great care and concern was shown for the German Shepherd Hercules, as well as for all of the other dogs featured throughout the production of the film," the company said. "There were several days of rehearsal of the water scenes to ensure Hercules was comfortable with all of the stunts. On the day of the shoot, ‪Hercules did not want to perform the stunt portrayed on the tape so the Amblin production team did not proceed with filming that shot."

However, a member of the American Humane Association who was on set a the time of the incident -- and thus responsible for the safety of its animal actors -- has reportedly been suspended after the video came to light, according to TMZ.

Meanwhile, PETA has called for a full-on boycott of the upcoming film in a scathing statement titled "Being Terrified on Set Is NOT ‘A Dog’s Purpose."

"The apparent on-set incident, which is hard to watch, may come as an unwelcome surprise to unsuspecting moviegoers who care about dogs — especially given the title of the film, based on the hit book of the same name," the statement reads.