10 Fun Facts About Togo | Coming to Disney+ on December 20th

I had the opportunity to talk with some of the amazing people that worked on the movie Togo last week at a small roundtable session. Let me tell you, when I got the invite to speak with Julianne Nicholson, Ericson Core, and Kim Zubick I jumped at the chance (because… Disney) without really having any background information about what the heck Togo was about. Then I watched a trailer and thought, a man and his dog sledding… okay… we’ve kinda seen this. So I didn’t know what to expect really when I watched this movie. Let me tell you, it is amazing and I’ll include all of that in my full review. For now here are ten Togo fun facts.

10 Fun Facts About Togo on Disney+

Togo is based entirely on a true story of Leonhard Seppala and his lead Siberian Husky Togo. The story follows the serum run set in 1925 Nome, Alaska.
Seppala set out on an over 600 mile run in the worst storm in Alaskan history to retrieve and deliver antitoxins to the children of Nome during an outbreak of diphtheria.
If this story sounds familiar and you aren’t sure why, it’s because you’ve probably heard of Balto. Balto was owned by Seppala and ran the last leg of the serum run to deliver the serum to Nome.
Togo ran the furthest, Balto got the credit. So much so that even has a dang statue in Central Park, NY.
Julianne Nicholson plays Constance Seppala (Leonhard’s wife) in Togo. What initially attracted her to the part? Willem Dafoe!
Togo was a mischievous puppy! Seppala never expected him to be a leading sled dog. He even tried to give Togo away – twice.
This is Diesel’s (the dog who plays Togo) first movie! Even more special? Diesel happens to be a direct descendant of Togo.
Though the actual serum run took place in Nome, Alaska, Togo was filmed in the Canadian Rockies.
Ericson Core shared with us that the entire film is shot with live animals (no CGI) aside from any scene where the animals were in peril or discomfort.
The biggest challenge while filming Togo was the weather. With all real scenes and action production and cast were all left at the mercy of the weather. The snow, or lack thereof when needed caused them to change the shooting schedule multiple times.

About Togo

From Disney+, “Togo” is the untold true story set in the winter of 1925 that takes you across the treacherous terrain of the Alaskan tundra for an exhilarating and uplifting adventure that will test the strength, courage and determination of one man, Leonhard Seppala, and his lead sled dog, Togo.