Conservationist Jane Goodall On Her Hopes For ‘Howl’, The Live-Action Movie She Is Exec-Producing With Leonardo DiCaprio, And The Power Of Film To Change The World

Stewart Clarke
·5 min read
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EXCLUSIVE: Jane Goodall is one of the world’s most renowned conservationists and foremost experts on chimpanzees. Her life’s work has been spreading knowledge about animals and the natural world, challenging what was historically a male-dominated scientific establishment along the way. Goodall’s work has drawn her admiration and respect from all corners, including from Leonardo DiCaprio, with whom she is an executive producer on upcoming film Howl.

The live-action movie will tell the story of a dog and wolf’s joint battle for survival. It is the first picture from Promethean Pictures, the label created by Argo Films’ Richard Johns and E. Elias Merhige (Shadow of the Vampire). Merhige is directing from Christopher Monger’s (Temple Grandin) screenplay

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Goodall fully understands the power of film to change how people interact with the natural world. Much of her early work, dating back to her time in Tanzania in the 1960s, was memorably committed to film. The late wildlife photographer and Goodall’s former husband Hugo van Lawick captured many hours of that landmark footage. Brett Morgen’s feature documentary Jane, told the story of the primatologist, and other projects based on her remarkable life have been made, with more are in the works.

As Goodall celebrates her 90th year, she sat down with Deadline to talk about Howl and her hopes for the film, which is set to hit screens in 2026.

DEADLINE: You are an executive producer on Howl, what sparked your interest?

JANE GOODALL: What captured my interest was that I’m horrified at the way wolves are portrayed. Dogs are my favorite animals, and it just seemed that this was a film that would bring everything together and raise awareness about the fact that wolves are just undomesticated dogs in a way,

DEADLINE: What do you hope people will learn about wolves in the film?

JANE GOODALL: In terms of the [negative] portrayal of wolves, I would start with ‘Little Red Riding Hood’. I hope that through the film people will see that wolves are not the horrible, vicious creatures that they sometimes think they are. When I think what happens to wolves, being caught in leg-hold traps and being poisoned, it’s just horrible. They’re treated like vermin, but they’re so beautiful.

DEADLINE: This is a live-action movie and Andrew Simpson, who worked on the The Revenant and Game of Thrones, will be the wolf whisperer and dog trainer. Have you seen him work?

JANE GOODALL: Yes, the film is with real animals and, of course, a thing that absolutely fascinates me is the training of the wolves and this wonderful man who only rewards encouragement. I’ve seen a little bit now, I’ve seen the two wolf pups going into the house for the first time that’s been constructed for the film and it was absolutely charming.

DEADLINE: Much of your work with chimpanzees was captured on film and had a tremendous real-world impact, but you also met with resistance from the establishment. What did that teach you about how films can change attitudes?

JANE GOODALL: After I’d been with the chimpanzees for two years, I was made to go to Cambridge [University]. I hadn’t been to college, and I was told I’d done everything wrong and that I shouldn’t talk about chimps having personalities, minds or emotions, I shouldn’t give them names and I should give them numbers. It was my dog who taught me that that was all rubbish, and I just went on talking and writing about the chimps as they were, but it was when Hugo’s film came out and started going around that scientific attitude changed. It wasn’t my words so much as Hugo’s film that brought my work to life.

After that, I worked with Hugo on a number of other films, and I’ve watched many films. Certainly films can change the way people perceive an animal that they didn’t know anything about before.

DEADLINE: The natural world faces more existential threats than ever before because of mankind and global warming but I know your message is one of hope. Is it hard to remain hopeful given the situation in the real world?

JANE GOODALL: People are committing suicide because they’ve lost hope. But you know something, I remember one of Leonardo [DiCaprio’s] films Don’t Look Up, and there was a lot of concern because it ends on a note that isn’t positive, it’s the end of the world. And so, I was asked to make an alternative ending, I was asked to provide a hopeful ending to that film.

We need that, we must have hope. If people watch Howl and see that dogs and wolves can get on together and wolves aren’t terrible, vicious creatures, hopefully that gives them hope. If they believe there’s hope to stop trophy hunting wolves and killing them and poisoning them, they’re more likely to go on fighting and have hope their fighting might do some good.

DEADLINE: You mention Leonardo DiCaprio who is also an executive producer on Howl. What is the connection between you two?

JANE GOODALL: We have met a few times, and he’s introduced me to some of his friends. We email from time-to-time. He’s been involved with making a number of films that have had a big impact, and he’s always talked about those with me.

DEADLINE: What will your involvement be with Howl as the project comes together?

JANE GOODALL: I’m going to go and watch the animals being trained and meet the wolf whisperer. And, of course, I’ll be shown the film as we go along. I was shown the dog when they were looking at dogs in 2,000 shelters to find the right one for the film. They found the one with exactly the right personality, and then started searching for a double. They found one that was so identical that we think they may be brothers.

I’ve begged them to do the DNA testing quickly. If we found the dogs that we found in a shelter in Chicago and then a shelter in Florida really are brothers who were separated, I mean, wow, that’s a story in itself.

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