In Dreamworks' How to Train Your Dragon, the small Viking town of Berk is under constant attack by dragons. While most of the Vikings at Berk are ready and able to fight these dragons, one man has the enthusiasm but none of the ability to do so—the unfortunately-named Hiccup (Mason Thames). Hiccup wants to slay dragons like his father, Stoick (Gerard Butler, reprising his role from the animated film), the town’s leader. But where Stoick is big, strong, and fearless, Hiccup is a toothpick who could be felled by a light wind.
But during yet another dragon raid, Hiccup does the impossible—he attacks and fells a dragon. Not just any dragon; a Night Fury, a dragon so powerful and terrifying, no Viking has ever seen it and lived to tell the tale. This should be Hiccup’s grand entrance into Viking-hood. Except, nobody sees the deed done and nobody believes Hiccup. He must find the dead dragon and prove his worth—but the dragon didn’t die and he’s actually weirdly friendly? Everything Hiccup knows about dragons turns out to be wrong. Now, how can he change the minds of his people who have known nothing but the terror of dragonattacks?
Based on the 2010 animated film and the 2003 novel by Cressida Cowell, How to Train Your Dragon is the latest in a long line of live-action remakes of popular animated films. The adaptations are a great way for Hollywood to acquire new audiences—intellectual property, or IP, continues to be the biggest sell in entertainment, far outweighing original stories. But one question always arises: if an animated property already exists, why make a live-action version at all?
While watching How to Train Your Dragon, there were times when I felt it made a decent case for being adapted to live-action. But I eventually came away from it feeling the film had done the opposite.
How to Train Your Dragon (2025) is essentially a shot-for-shot remake of the animated film. Writer-director of the live-action film, Dean DeBlois, had co-written and co-directed the animated version back in 2010, and that vision remains almost entirely intact in this one. The challenge with a shot-for-shot remake is less about the story and character beats, but more about the locations and cinematography. The animated How to Train Your Dragon had gorgeous landscapes and detailed interiors. Somehow, the live-action film manages to have almost exactly the same outdoor locations and highly-detailed and sculpted interior sets. It must have been a massive feat to find locations that looked like the animated film nearly fifteen years later. The majestic landscapes are a sight to behold, particularly on the big screen. In that sense, the live-action remake is a spectacle not to be missed.
Additionally, the new How to Train Your Dragon diversifies the cast. Nico Parker steps into the role of Astrid, who, although voiced by America Ferrera in the animated film, looked like a blonde, white Viking. Astrid also gets a bit more backstory for why she’s as driven as she is to win dragon training. Interestingly, this film also has Astrid directly call Hiccup out on the privileges he enjoys for being the town leader’s son. It’s a good addition and relevant to our times.
Parker also isn’t the only actor of colour in the film. Maori actor Julian Dennison takes on the role of Fishlegs, who had been voiced by Christopher Mintz-Plasse. There are also other actors of colour who not only pepper the background but get some dialogue and background. And, before the bigots come out of the woodwork screeching about Vikings being white, these characters of colour all have a reason to be recognised as Vikings in Berk.
I also liked that there were actors of different sizes in the cast. Dennison is a fat actor playing a fat character—still a rarity in Hollywood (see: Colin Farrell was in a fat suit to play the Penguin as recently as 2024). And surprisingly, one of the thin characters in the animated film, Ruffnut, is played by a fat actor in the live-action film, Bronwyn James. When we talk about diversity, fat representation often gets left behind, so it was good to see this change in How to Train Your Dragon (2025).
The dragons are, of course, animated in the live-action film, and while their designs stay true to the animated original, they are highly detailed and wondrous to watch on the big screen. You get the whimsy of the 2010 film but the splendor of advanced animation technology.
For all these reasons, How to Train Your Dragon (2025) could have been a great live-action film, except it doesn’t do enough to set itself apart from the original. For instance, the role of Gobber, played by Nick Frost in the live-action film, should have gone to an actor from the disabled community. Gobber is a character who lost his arm fighting a dragon, and lost a leg fighting another one. Why is an able-bodied actor playing this character in the year 2025? For all the film’s attempts at diversity, the lack of disability representation in this story, in particular, is infuriating. After all, Hollywood has the resources to find actors with disability—it chooses not to do so.
Here’s another thing: I didn’t watch the original film when it was first released. I literally watched it just because I was going to an advanced screening of the live-action film. And for all the diversity and the beauty of the locations, every scene was so painfully similar, down to the musical beats, the camera angles, and the dialogue delivery, that I ached for something new.
This is the first DreamWorks animated film adapted to live-action and, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I want DreamWorks to take a leaf out of Disney’s book. Say what you will about the Aladdin live-action remake, but that film managed to pay homage to the animated original while adding in new elements, character development, and spectacle to give the audience a brand-new viewing experience. I don’t get that from How to Train Your Dragon. Had it not been for the human actors, I’d be watching the same film.
Having said all that, the packed audience at the screening I attended certainly enjoyed How to Train Your Dragon (2025). They laughed, guffawed, and commented during the film and the credits rolled to applause. People walked away talking about how exciting the film was and how much fun they’d had. If I could take off my reviewer’s cap, I may have been able to enjoy the film more thoroughly. But with my critical eye, I couldn’t help but think of the lost potential of adapting an existing property to a new medium.
If you’re looking for a fun, adventure-filled film, How to Train Your Dragon (2025) is definitely for you. But don’t expect anything new if you’re a fan of the animated film.
How to Train Your Dragon is now playing in theaters.