When a live-action remake of How To Train Your Dragon was announced, it’s fair to say the reaction from diehard fans of DreamsWorks’ acclaimed animated trilogy was pretty negative. That is, if by “pretty negative” you mean fans were ready to hunt down Universal execs like a troop of dragon-hunting Scotsmen.
DreamWorks repeating Disney’s uber-controversial tactic of restaging its beloved animated classics in live-action seemed like the death-knell of cinema for some, so you’d think that the release of the first teaser trailer for the incoming redo would result in a new wave of hate. Instead the unexpected has happened… People are actually kinda into it.
This minute-long teaser definitely does all the right things in winning over any skeptical fans of the originals. With close recreations of famous moments from the 2010 movie, the presence of Gerard Butler back as Hiccup’s dad Stoick, and the use of composer John Ottman’s stirring score, it’s impossible to watch this trailer and not feel a surge of nostalgia for the 14-year-old film (which came out either a blink of an eye or eons ago, depending on your age).
In the wake of the trailer’s arrival, social media is full of those coming to terms with the fact that, despite themselves, they’re actually excited for this thing now.
God bless DreamWorks for not messing with masterpiece of adorable animal design that is Hiccup’s dragon, Toothless. Blessedly, he’s no Ugly Sonic nor as ultra-realistic as The Lion King‘s critters and is just as charming as ever.
“I’m baffled by how good this is!” is the kind of sentiment that’s going around a lot in response to the teaser. The reason why this one seems to have got it so right, whereas many other live-action remakes have got it wrong in the past, is because original director Dean DuBois is back to helm it. Of course he’s managed to recapture the wonder of what he created the first time around.
It’ll be interesting to contrast and compare the positive reaction to How to Train Your Dragon‘s teaser with that to our first taste of Disney’s Lilo & Stitch remake — which isn’t here yet, despite that movie arriving even sooner (in May). Both animated movies were directed by DuBois but he’s only involved in the HTTYD reimagining, not Lilo. The Disney project does have Dean Fleischer Camp — the man behind 2021’s Oscar-nominated Marcel — on hand to replace him, so it could still be something special. Even so, if Dragon goes down much better with fans then it seems DreamWorks may have stumbled upon the secret formula for cracking the tricky live-action adaptation equation: actually invite back the people who made the first one so great. Who knew!
Butler is the only actor from the animation to return for the live-action, however. Instead, Mason Thames (The Black Phone) and Nico Parker (daughter of Thandiwe Newton) take over as leads Hiccup and Astrid, with Nick Frost and Julian Dennison in supporting roles. How to Train Your Dragon may just be coming to show Disney how to remake your classics on Jun. 13, 2025.
Published: Nov 19, 2024 03:39 pm