SPOILER WARNING: The following article may contain a few light spoilers for the live-action How to Train Your Dragon remake. If you have not yet seen the new 2025 movie, or even the hit Dreamworks animated film that inspired it, it would probably be best to proceed with caution as you read on.
It has already been a big year for live-action adaptations of animated movies, with the release of Snow White and Lilo & Stitch by Disney. Universal and DreamWorks are getting in on the trend with How to Train Your Dragon, for which original co-writer and co-director Dean DeBloise returns to bring the Isle of Berk to life in a new medium just 15 years later.
While that may seem like a pretty short amount of time to justify a remake (and I would agree), this latest take on Cressida Cowell’s fantasy novel turned out to be, echoing its early critical reception, one of the most thrilling and heartwarming cinematic experiences I have had so far in 2025. However, and I hate to say it, I still found myself just a bit let down by the new kids movie, and part of it has to do with the lead dragon character, Toothless. Allow me to explain…
Toothless Is A Carbon Copy Of His Original Design
Just like in the original acclaimed kids movie from 2010, How to Train Your Dragon follows aspiring dragon hunter Hiccup (now played by Mason Thames), who befriends a rare breed of dragon known as Nightfury, whom he names Toothless. I never watched the trailer for the live-action movie, wanting to preserve my first glimpse at the adorable flying reptile’s new look for when I see the final product. In retrospect, perhaps I should have snuck a peek at the new movie’s design for the character and saved myself the disappointment.
Toothless looks exactly the same, as if he were plucked from the original animated film and placed into a live-action setting. I mean, clearly, the CGI graphics have been improved upon, but that’s about the extent of it, and, in fact, I don’t think the improvements were enough to make him seem like a real living, breathing part of this world. Thus, I believe it was a huge missed opportunity not to give Toothless a makeover for the remake, but that’s actually just one criticism I have in this particular regard.
The Whole Movie Is A Direct Copy Of The Original
Not only does Toothless look almost completely identical to his 2010 counterpart in the new film, but so does… just about everything in the movie, from its production design to its costuming and almost every other detail you could shake a stick at. However, How to Train Your Dragon is not just a visual clone of the animated original, as the script does not bother to take many liberties either.
I believe that the goal of any remake should be to justify its existence with something new, especially when it comes to the story, but also when it comes to its aesthetic. The only reason I am still giving the movie a pass is the refreshingly well-choreographed action scenes, beautifully shot flight sequences, and genuinely strong performances.
Did Other Business Considerations Play A Role?
With how much scrutiny all the new live-action Disney animated movie remakes are put under for not being creative with their source material, I had to wonder what influenced Universal and DreamWorks to do away with any creative freedom for How to Train Your Dragon. Then, I discovered that Universal’s newest theme park, Epic Universe, includes a whole section based on the Isle of Berk, and everything started to make sense.
Now, I am not one to jump to conclusions based on pure speculation, but I would not be surprised if the powers that be wanted Toothless and other dragons from this franchise to resemble their original designs in the new film because that is what their animatronic forms in Epic Universe were based upon. Perhaps they even considered how it would affect their toy sales, believing a cute Toothless action figure, which you can now pre-order on Amazon, would sell better than one that looks like it was taken out of a Tolkien novel.
I suppose I can understand why Universal could have potentially felt that taking too many creative liberties for the How to Train Your Dragon remake could have harmed its marketability, but I also disagree. I think giving people a fresh, new take on a familiar story is always going to get more people interested. Had I not seen the original movie, I might have loved this even more, but I think that’s the one I will stick with from now on… not that it would make too much of a difference.
