Pancho: El perro millonario ('Pancho, the millionaire dog') will start filming in 2013 and features a Jack Russell terrier of the same name.

The pooch's real name is Cook, and he is no stranger to the cameras after having starred in the sitcom Aquí no hay quien viva on Antena 3, where he played Valentín.

In fact, his trainer, Antonio Valor of Animales de Cine, says Cook's first role was in an advert when he was four months old.

It was this series of adverts, in which he was already named Pancho on screen, which form the basis of the new film, explains Robert Fonollosa of Four Luck Banana, the production company.

The story, which includes some impressive special effects, tells how Pancho acquires a winning lottery ticket and runs away, leading a jet-set lifestyle.

It shows clips from the advertising campaign which originally made him famous and led to his appearance at the Goya awards in 2010, where Fonollosa spotted him and came up with the idea for the film.

“My wife bought him for me as a present long before Jack Russells were the 'in thing' in Spain,” Valor explained.

The finishing touches are being made to the script and a director is being sought, after which filming will commence next year.