Ever since the wild ride that was Tiger King, back in 2020, Netflix has been diving into the world of bizarre documentaries with varying results. Tiger King 2, after all, was a miss. But finally, there might be a story to give Joe Exotic a run for his money. Funnily enough, this time it’s about a dog named Gunther, who just happens to be a multimillionaire.
The trailer starts innocently enough. There is a dog! He was left an $80 million estate by his late owner, German Countess Karlotta Leibenstein — just like in Disney’s The Aristocats. Gunther lives an extravagant lifestyle with mansions, yachts, and presumably the finest kibble money can buy. That’s weird, sure, but pretty tame all things considered.
And then comes the revelation that the people managing Gunther wanted to give the dog “the best lifestyle possible,” which evidently meant having a group of attractive, young rising pop stars living in a mansion with him 24/7. Not only were they rooming with a dog, they had to follow a series of “commandments,” and were encouraged to have sex with others in the mansion. They were also monitored all the time, like some bizarre version of Love Island or Big Brother. Also, apparently, they were being researched?
The trailer points at the cult-like nature of this social dynamic, and raises other questions about the legitimacy of Gunther’s wealth. The trailer also glosses over this startling line about “engineering a new breed of man.” What the hell?
From there, it’s a rapid-fire compilation of people dodging questions and saying increasingly suspicious statements — ending with the big revelation that the dogs are cloned! I guess that explains how one German shepherd has lived for three decades. Even with that surprise spoiled, there are still dozens of questions about what the hell is going on within this canine-empire.
Gunther’s Millions premieres on Netflix on Feb. 1.