

A teenager ends up being hounded by a well-groomed and seemingly cute and tiny dog that actually turns out to be a nightmare of a beast.
Acting
Shia LaBeouf's unhinged villain energy is already fully formed.
Practical Effects
The dog's evil transformation is gloriously unconvincing puppetry.

Director
Neal Israel
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This was Shia LaBeouf's first Disney Channel project before Even Stevens made him a household name. You can see him already going full method with the weird physical comedy.
Hounded represents peak DCOM formula: take a relatable teen problem, add supernatural/magical animal, stir until lesson learned. The early 2000s output was relentless.