How to Train Your Dragon is a beloved DreamWorks franchise that has gone on to have three animated films, multiple shows, and shorts. With news of a live-action movie already in development, fans will return to Berk much sooner than expected.

With Hiccup, Astrid, Toothless, and friends making the jump to live action, there will be plenty of questions. We’ll explain everything you need to know about How to Train Your Dragon (2025).

Editor's Note: This article was updated on March 4, 2024.

Who Are The Cast of the Live-Action 'How to Train Your Dragon' Movie?

Casting announcements are still to come, but we do know who our two leads will be. Mason Thames (The Black Phone) will star as Hiccup, with Nico Parker (The Last of Us) playing Astrid. The two rising stars will be putting on their Viking helmet as they bring the franchise to life in a way we've never seen before. Gerad Butler will reprise his role as Stoick, Hiccup's father. Bulter voiced the role in the animated film How to Train Your Dragon. Ruth Codd (The Fall of the House of Usher) will play Phlegma, a Viking from the same village as Hiccup and Astrid.

Does 'How to Train Your Dragon' Have a Release Date?

Filming was set to begin on June 30, 2023, in Los Angeles, CA. Unfortunately, the film's production was significantly delayed due to the dueling WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. How to Train Your Dragon had a release date set for March 14, 2024, but the film was pushed back an entire year to June 13, 2025. With the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike, there's a chance that the film will see another delay. Stay tuned to Collider for more information on the film's production and the SAG-AFTRA strike.

Who Is Behind the Live-Action 'How to Train Your Dragon' Movie?

How to Train Your Dragon (2025) will be brought to life by Dean DeBlois, the creator of the animated film. With DeBlois producing, writing, and directing, we should expect a faithful adaptation of the source material with a few new twists and turns along the way. Similar to how Neil Druckmann helped create both The Last of Us video game and the HBO series. Universal Pictures, the parent company behind DreamWorks Animation, will back the film.

Does 'How to Train Your Dragon' Have a Trailer?

No, since filming has not started, there is no trailer for How to Train Your Dragon. It will be a good while before we see any footage of the film, so you're probably better off revisiting the animated movie for now. You can stream the film by clicking the button below.

Watch on Prime Video

What Is 'How to Train Your Dragon' About?

Based on the Cressida Cowell novels of the same name, How to Train Your Dragon takes us to the village of Berk, home of legendary Vikings and dragon slayers. Hiccup (Jay Baruchel) is the son of the village leader, Stoick the Vast (Gerald Butler), and to keep up the family tradition, he must slay a dragon when he comes of age. The kind-hearted Hiccup can’t bring himself to take a life, especially after meeting Toothless, a friendly dragon.

How to Train Your Dragon is a coming-of-age tale that beautifully blends high fantasy and family drama. Throughout the trilogy, Hiccup becomes a great leader and helps change Berk from a world that killed dragons for survival to one where they all live in harmony. The franchise is endearing because it’s a true coming-of-story as we follow Hiccup from a child into his adulthood, watching him grow every step.

The original animated trilogy grossed over $1.6 billion at the box office. All three films were nominated for Best Animated Film at the Academy Awards.

With the genre revitalized by shows like Rings of Power and House of the Dragon, it makes sense for Universal to throw its hat into the ring with its own fantasy project. The upcoming film will reimagine How to Train Your Dragon and focus on Hiccup's first meeting with Toothless. We will likely see them adapt the rest of the trilogy in a fantasy epic if successful.

More Projects in the 'How to Train Your Dragon' Extended Universe

With How to Train Your Dragon getting a live-action adaptation, let’s take a moment and look back at the animated franchise and just how much it grew over such a short amount of time. Here’s the full How to Train Your Dragon universe in chronological order.

How to Train Your Dragon Trilogy - The movie trilogy focuses on Hiccup and his journey from a timid child to a strong man. It’s the films everyone is familiar with: How to Train Your Dragon, How to Train Your Dragon 2, and How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World. These stories were released between 2010 and 2019, being one of the highest-rated animated trilogies ever made.

DreamWorks Dragons Animated Series - A major part of the How to Train Your Dragon mythos is the various animated shows that expand the franchise with episodic stories about the supporting characters and smaller stories within the Dragons universe. Dragons follow Hiccup and his friends, focusing on the events between the first and second movies.

Riders of Berk, Defenders of Berk, and Race to the Edge are shows that further explore the Dragons world while working in tandem with the feature films. They deep dive into the lore-heavy aspects of the story and flesh out the relationships between Hiccup, his friends, and most importantly, Berk and its bond with Dragons. The show had multiple storylines across all three iterations of the series.

Dragons: The Nine Realms - Set 1,300 years after the events of How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, Dragons: The Nine Realms is a sequel series where Dragons are nothing but a distant memory, legends from a forgotten time. In the present day, a group of kids discovers the truth about dragons and where they’ve been hiding all these years.

Dragons: The Nine Realms follows a completely new cast of characters and expands on the lore previously established in the How to Train Your Dragon franchise. It’s a series that skews to a younger demographic than the earlier films shows, but it’s still worth checking out if you want to continue exploring the universe.