Credit: Netflix

For more than five decades, Scooby-Doo has stayed pretty much the same. The mystery-solving Great Dane has popped up in countless animated series, numerous feature films, even specials, and reboots, but one thing never changed: Scooby himself was always animated. Well, that long-running tradition is finally coming to an end with Netflix!

That’s right, people. Netflix has dropped the first teaser for Scooby-Doo: Origins, its upcoming live-action series, and with it comes a proper franchise first. Scooby-Doo’s gonna be played by an actual dog. Eh? Are you serious? It sounds pretty mad when you think about how long the franchise has been around, but it’s true. Despite all the TV shows and films over the years, this is the first time the lovable canine has appeared as a real dog instead of an animated creation.

And knowing Netflix, you know they didn’t go for just a plain headline. The reveal came in a short teaser that shows us a younger version of the Mystery Inc. gang. The footage follows a Great Dane wandering through the woods before eventually bumping into Shaggy Rogers, played by Tanner Hagen. The teaser wraps up with our first proper look at Scooby wearing his trademark teal collar while being held by his future best friend. How cool is that!

The decision is a pretty interesting one, because previous live-action Scooby-Doo projects went down a different route. The early-2000s films mixed live actors with a CGI version of Scooby, letting filmmakers keep his classic animated look… Which seemed fair enough. Netflix seems to be trying something different this time, bringing the character more into the real world while still making sure it keeps all the bits that fans love.

What?! Honestly, after more than 55 years of stories, cartoons, and films, the franchise has still found something it’s never done before. That’s Netflix for you.

The series itself works as an origin story for Mystery Inc. Set when the gang are a bit younger, Scooby-Doo: Origins follows Shaggy and Daphne Blake, played by Mckenna Grace, during their final summer at camp. Before they know it, they are caught up in a mystery involving a lost Great Dane puppy that might’ve witnessed a supernatural murder. As things get weird, they team up with Velma Dinkley (Abby Ryder Fortson) and Fred Jones (Maxwell Jenkins).

Together, the four teenagers start investigating a case that eventually becomes the foundation for the famous mystery-solving team audiences have known for generations. Netflix describes it as the moment that first brought Mystery Inc. together. The project also features Paul Walter Hauser in a role that is still under wraps.

Netflix has the series up for release in 2027, so fans have still got a bit of a wait before they can see the full story. Even so, the teaser has already done one thing: it has given the franchise a genuinely fresh thing to talk about. For something that’s been around since 1969, that’s no small feat. Honestly, the biggest mystery right now isn’t the supernatural case… It’s to see how a real dog would do in the show!