Most people know of Tom Hardy as a badass onscreen. Offscreen, however, Hardy is a big guy with a big heart to match. The Internet is filled with photos of Hardy posing with various dogs. There is one particular dog you might notice is in most of his photos: Woodstock. Hardy first met Woodstock when he was only 11 weeks old and he’s been in his life ever since. He actually rescued him from an expressway in Atlanta. They’ve grown extremely close over the years to the point where Hardy considered him one of his best companions. Sadly, Woodstock passed away a few days ago.There are numerous photos on the Internet of the actor posing with various dogs. And it wasn’t that long ago when the actor melted everyone’s hearts by bringing his canine best friend to the premiere of “Legend.”
His dog’s name is Woodstock but he called him Woody for short.
Shortly after rescuing him, Hardy brought the pup to a pet shop to buy the little guy food, a collar and toys.
“We were in Atlanta, Georgia, doing Lawless, and he was in the motorway. We almost ran him over with a Prius,” he told Vulture in 2014.
“He ran off into the motorway, and Jess was like, ‘No, no, no! You’ve got to go after him!'”
Imagine, an 11-year-old puppy wandering aimlessly on an expressway. Thankfully, Hardy got a hold of him and eventually transformed him into an on-set dog.
It wasn’t until after he cleared quarantine that Hardy brought him back to London with him, making him officially Hardy’s dog.
“He goes on all my film sets now. He’s a great on-set dog.”
In honor of his canine companion, Hard wrote and posted a heartfelt tribute onto his Tumblr page.
“Never forget that night. It was wonderful. One minute he was almost dead next terrified, then picked up by strangers,” he wrote about the first time he rescued Woody.
“Then after he had a power nap in the car, he’s walking with his bandy leg John Wayne strut under the strip lighted aisles of this massive pet store happy and playful.”
He was diagnosed with polymyositis, an uncommon inflammatory disease. It causes muscle weakness, affecting the entire body.
In his touching tribute, he wrote: “He was an Angel. And he was my best friend. We went through so much together.”
“He has been on many sets. Met many crews. Photo shoots, premieres, made many, many friends.”
In his post, Hardy confessed that he doesn’t normally speak publicly about his family and friends but there was something different about this particular circumstance.
“I am ultimately grateful for his loyal companionship and love and it is of some great comfort that he is no longer suffering.”
The news of Woody’s passing has left many people heartbroken. Ever since Hardy went public with his tribute, the news has been shared by several people on social media.
He ended the post by telling Woody that he was the literally the best friend he’s ever had.
“To me and to a family who loved him beyond words and whom he loved without doubt more than I have ever known.”
But before you do, be warned that your heart might just break a little more from reading his endearing words.
It’s a 9 minute slide show of great memories Hardy and Woody has shared together.
**Here’s the 9 minute tribute video Hardy made in honor of Woody.**