Timber Wolf

The Timber Wolf is the main antagonist of the 1987 drama film Benji the Hunted. He is a vicious and violent wolf set on killing Benji and the Cougar cubs. He is the boss of the Eagle.

He was voiced by Jack Angel.

Role in the Film
As Benji returns to the cabin to get the other dead quail, the Hunter catches him and ties him up. Reading Benji’s collar, the Hunter remembers there is a reward for the dog’s rescue and plans to kill him. When the Hunter goes inside, Benji tugs at the rope, trying to break free. Just then, the Wolf growls at Benji. When the Hunter comes outside, the Wolf runs away. As Benji paces the area as far as the rope will allow, the Wolf comes back and Benji makes a commotion. The Hunter comes outside to see about the noise, scaring the Wolf away. The Hunter briefly unties Benji while trying to unravel his rope. Benji grabs the other dead quail in his mouth and runs back to the cubs. Benji sees an adult female cougar and barks, but she growls at him. Benji then moves the cubs to a new location, carrying each of them individually in his mouth. While doing this, the helicopter flies overhead and Benji sees his trainer in the window. By the time Benji has finished moving the cubs to the new den, he discovers that the Wolf has eaten the quail. Benji searches for more food, barking at the cubs when they try to follow him. Meanwhile, the Wolf begins to movie in on the cubs, but the helicopter flies overhead, scaring him away.

The next day, as the Mother Cougar and her cub are walking through the forest, the Eagle signals the Wolf to attack Benji from behind. The Wolf chases Benji, but the dog manages to elude him. Later, the four cubs follow Benji along the path. A large brown Kodiak bear comes into the clearing. Benji and the cubs hide, but one of the cubs runs toward the Bear, hissing at him. The Bear growls, scaring the cub back to the hiding place. When the Bear moves toward them, Benji barks and runs the opposite direction. The Bear gives chase, but soon loses interest. However, the Wolf appears again and chases Benji. They run a long distance over the mountain until Benji leads the Wolf to the Bear. The Bear growls and scares the Wolf away.

As Benji sees the Mother Cougar near a waterfall, he runs to get the cubs, but finds the Wolf watching the cubs. Benji barks at the Wolf, then bites at him. The cubs hide under a rock where the Wolf cannot reach them. Benji jumps on the Wolf’s back, then runs away. While Benji was being chased, he hides in a bush next to a cliff. The Wolf jumps over the bush thinking that Benji was there, but instead, it was the cliff, and Benji watches as the Wolf falls to his death while howling.

Appearance
The Timber Wolf is quite small compared to most North American wolves. He is a slender black wolf who is part dog and has blue-brown eyes and grayish-white fur on his upper-jaw and nose and on the lowers have of his legs and paws.

Personality
The Timber Wolf is shown to have an extremely violent and destructive nature, wishing to kill and destroy. Though his reasons as to why he wants to kill the cubs are unknown, some suggestions have arisen such as a hatred for dogs, to make a dog's life a misery by killing his/her friends, an act of revenge for the death of a pack, or simply an innate desire to kill. He shows intelligence beyond a simply hungry and carnivorous predator; he is extremely wrathful, sadistic, homicidal, and manipulative with sinister intentions and goals.

Trivia

 * The Timber Wolf is very similar to the Alpha Wolf from The Grey. Both are menacing dark wolves who want to kill the protagonists (Benji and Ottaway) and don't hesitate to kill anyone who gets in their way.
 * The Timber Wolf is very similar to the Rat from Disney's 1955 animated film Lady and the Tramp. Both are homicidal predators who want to kill a child (Cougar cubs for the Timber Wolf; Baby for the Rat). Both have a hatred for dogs. Both have dark fur and have a sinister and destructive nature. Both died in the end (The Timber Wolf falls off a cliff; The Rat is killed by Tramp).
 * There are hints that the Timber Wolf is a villain:
 * When the Mother Cougar and her cub are walking through the forest, the Eagle signals the Wolf to ambush Benji. This shows that the Eagle is a close companion to the Wolf.
 * Because the Wolf is part dog, he apparently can understand Benji.