‘Britain’s ugliest dog’ gets role in Deadpool & Wolverine alongside Hollywood A-listers

Chinese Crested dog
(Image credit: Getty Images)

Is there such a thing as an ugly dog? There are various ‘ugliest dog’ contests, but it’s all subjective – many of the dogs who do well in these contests are actually quite cute!

And one such dog, Peggy – the winner of the 2023 Britain’s Ugliest Dog competition, is doing rather well for herself – though she’s hopefully relaxing with some of the best dog toys at the moment! The pooch rose to fame through the contest, and in November actor Ryan Reynolds posted a photo of her in a Deadpool costume on social media.

He revealed that she’d be appearing in the movie Deadpool & Wolverine, which is in movie theaters now. If you’ve seen it already, you’ll recognize her as Dogpool, an alternate-universe version of Deadpool.

Last month, Peggy, a cross between a Pug and a Chinese Crested (one of our top 10 toy dog breeds!), walked the red carpet with Reynolds and fellow star Hugh Jackman, with Reynolds telling Extra TV, “We were looking for a dog that kind of looked like Deadpool under the mask … We found the ugliest dog in the UK and that was her.”

They discovered her when searching online. Reynolds said that he views her as the “animal manifestation of Wade Wilson, Deadpool’s real name.

The pup didn’t have the easiest start in life. She was the runt of an accidental litter, and the last of her siblings to be adopted – perhaps partly down to her unconventional experience. After a few months, however, dog mom Holly Middleton came to visit her and it was love at first sight.

She said, per contest organizers Parrot Print, “We loved her the instant we laid eyes on her with her big brown eyes, little tuft of white hair, and her tongue lolling out to one side. I just felt sorry for her, sat there with no hair and her tongue out.

“She was six months old so I just felt like no one wanted her. We didn’t set out to get a quirky dog, an underdog. I hope it encourages people to overlook the little oddities of those dogs left on the shelf.”

Middleton entered Peggy into the contest after friends and relatives suggested it. And the judges loved Peggy, describing her as both ugly and cute simultaneously.

Now, Peggy has her own official Instagram account with photos of her as Dogpool, and she has over 800,000 followers already.

Of course, whether a dog is ugly or cute is up for debate, and there’s no objective way to judge it. However, we think these are the 15 cutest dog breeds in the world – what are your thoughts?

Adam England
Freelance Writer

Adam is a freelance journalist covering pets, lifestyle, health and culture, and he has six years' experience in journalism. He was senior editor at DogTime.com, and has written for The Independent, GoodToKnow and Healthline

He's also spent the last few years studying towards undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in journalism. While a cat person at heart, he's often visiting his parents' golden retriever, and when he's not writing about everything pets he's probably drinking coffee, visiting a cat cafe, or listening to live music.