Produced by Mandoo Pictures and Huayi Brothers, the film is loosely based on the Chinese graphic novel Tibetan Rock Dog by Zheng Jun.

[8][9] It features the voices of Luke Wilson, J. K. Simmons, Eddie Izzard, Lewis Black, Kenan Thompson, Mae Whitman, Jorge Garcia, Matt Dillon, and Sam Elliott.

The film focuses on a young Tibetan Mastiff who leaves his mountain home village to become a rock musician in the big city after a radio falls from the sky.

[11] Teenage Tibetan Mastiff Bodi is expected to be the next guard of the village of Snow Mountain; succeeding his father Khampa, who years ago drove out a pack of gangster grey wolves, led by the villainous Linnux.

Entranced with British rock legend Angus Scattergood, Bodi defies his father by modifying a traditional dramyin into a conventional Western guitar and neglecting his duties to pursue music.

Bodi forms a band with Darma and Germur, and they perform the song to the city, including the Snow Mountain villagers, Khampa, redeemed wolves, and other friends, while Trey comically fails to gain entry to the venue, being turned away by a bear bouncer.

Concepts for the film began in China, with production companies [16] It was animated by Reel FX, which produced Free Birds (2013) and the Golden Globe-nominated The Book of Life (2014).

[8] During its original theatrical run, Wanda Cinema Line withheld most Chinese theaters from showing Rock Dog, limiting the film's box office in China.

[4][23] In the United States, Rock Dog was released alongside Collide and Get Out, and was expected to gross $6–7 million from 2,077 theaters in its opening weekend.

[26][5] It was suggested that the largest Chinese theater chain, Wanda Cinema Line, attempted to limit the number of screens the film would be shown on.

The site's critical consensus reads: "Rock Dog is amiable enough, but its second-tier animation and uninspired story add up to a movie whose meager charms are likely to escape all but the youngest and least demanding viewers.

[35][36] Another sequel, titled Rock Dog 3: Battle the Beat, which is the third installment of the trilogy, was released on DVD, Blu-ray and digital download on January 24, 2023.