According to one of the film’s lead actors Nico Parker, rather than being a proper retelling of the Dreamworks-produced fantasy adventure, the upcoming live-action remake of How To Train Your Dragon will instead deliver “its own interpretation” of its animated source material.
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The daughter of actress Thandiwe Newton and currently set to portray the film’s presumably-race-swapped version of Astrid, Parker provided this clarification on the live-action remake’s creative direction during a recent interview given to Collider in promotion of her upcoming film Suncoast.
Asked by the outlet’s Christina Radish as to how she felt about being entrusted with bringing to life a piece of media so beloved, the young actress revealed, “I’m nervous about all of it because I care about it so much and everyone cares about it so much, and I just so would love to make everyone proud.”
“I’m constantly nervous about it,” she explained. “But to me, there was no reason to not do it. It’s being made with such brilliant people and everyone’s so talented and everyone cares about it so deeply. After I spoke to Dean [DeBlois], the director who also made the animated movies, I was just like, how could anyone not want to be involved in it? It’s amazing. It’s stressful, but I’m very, very excited for it to be finished and out into the world and everyone can experience it.”
From there, Parker was pressed by Radish for insight into what fans could expect from the upcoming production in terms of its visual and narrative takes on the source material.
In turn, the HBO’s The Last of Us actress asserted, “I think it’s very much its own thing, but I’d like to think so much of that magic is also prevalent in this one.”
“But I think it’s its own film and it’s its own interpretation and everyone has their own version of a character,” she added. “It’s important not to get too wrapped up, especially because the animated ones are so brilliant. It’s like, let’s not try and just do a play by play of that. And if anyone wants that, they can watch the animated ones. I think it’ll be wonderful, and if it isn’t, I’m having a wonderful time making it anyway. I’ll think it’s wonderful, no matter what.”
Set to be directed by the aforementioned DeBlois and featuring Scott Pilgrim vs. The World duo Marc Platt and Adam Siegel in the producers’ seat, the live-action How to Train Your Dragon remake is currently on track to land in theaters on June 13th, 2025.
As of writing, the film’s confirmed cast includes Parker as Astrid, Black Phone star Mason Thames as protagonist Hiccup, Deadpool 2 star Julian Dennison as Fishlegs Ingerman, Bodies (2023) actor Gabriel Howell as Snoutlout, Lockwood & Co. actor Bronwyn James as Ruffnut, Ten Percent actor Harry Trevaldwyn as Tuffnut, Into the Badlands star Nick Frost as Gobbler the Belch, and Gerard Butler in a reprisal of his original role as Hiccup’s father, Stoick the Vast.
