Clint Eastwood Encourages Animal Protection in New Doc ‘Why on Earth’
Published Sept. 2 2022, 12:03 p.m. ET
“I’m an animal person. I appreciate the beauty of them. I just like to see everything live,” Clint Eastwood states in the trailer for Why on Earth, a new documentary that explores the connection between humans, animals, and planet Earth.
The documentary gives viewers a look into the illegal wildlife trade, trophy hunting, factory farming, and more — keep reading for the details on Why on Earth and how you can watch it.
‘Why on Earth’ is a new documentary about the importance of protecting animals.
Model, actress, and filmmaker Katie Cleary directed and produced Why on Earth. Clearly is the founder of Peace 4 Animals, a group that works to protect endangered species in Africa, Indonesia, and India. Why on Earth is her second documentary, and is sort of a followup to her 2015 documentary Give Me Shelter, which focused on animal rescue and welfare.
In Why on Earth, Cleary exposes a number of ways humans take advantage of animals — and how these actions are hurting the planet, and in turn, us humans.
Taking viewers into countries including South Africa, Kenya, and Indonesia, director Cleary, DP Hunter Nolan, and writer Kristin Rizzo documented people working to protect endangered orangutans from deforestation due to the palm oil industry; how the illegal shark trade has hurt shark populations in South Africa; the impacts of people poaching endangered species such as elephants, lions, and African rhinos; and more.
Cleary’s goal with Why on Earth is to “raise awareness and create positive change to mainstream this movement in order to save our planet's most critical species.”
"There are simple things that we as humans can and must do to prevent the devastation of our rainforests and to enact stricter penalties for poachers who kill endangered and threatened species,” Cleary added — one of them being rejecting the animal agriculture industry by eating a plant-based diet.
To that end, the documentary also gives a glimpse into the animal agriculture industry, including chickens being raised for their meat, and cows being raised for dairy.
Clint Eastwood appears in ‘Why on Earth’ to promote animal protection and a vegan diet.
“The plant-based diet should affect positive changes for the well-being of animals and the people,” Clint Eastwood adds in the Why on Earth trailer. “The best thing we could do is manage the beautiful things we have. And animals fit right into that category.”
In addition to Eastwood, other filmmakers to appear in Why on Earth include Leilani Munter, Maggie Q, Kristin Bauer, John Salley, Shannon Elizabeth, and Dan Richardson; the film also includes interviews with conservationists including Damien Mander, Alison Towner, Paul Hilton, and Jim Abernethy.
How to watch ‘Why on Earth’ documentary:
As of Aug. 16, 2022, Why on Earth is available to rent or buy from a number of services, including Amazon, iTunes, YouTube, Vimeo, Vudi, and Hoopla. Additionally, you can watch the documentary on-demand via a number of cable companies, including Cox, Comcast, Dish, and DIRECTV.
