How to Train Your Dragon (2025) Review - Is the Live Action Worth It?

How to Train Your Dragon is a live-action Hollywood movie inspired by the 2010 animation. It premiered in theaters around the world in June 2025.

It was directed and written by Dean DeBlois, inspired by the Cressida Cowell books, and produced by DreamWorks Animation Studios and Marc Platt Productions. Mason Thames (Hiccup), Gerard Butler (Stoick), and Nico Parker (Astrid) star in the main roles.

"Hiccup", a weird and clumsy young Viking, lives in the village of Berk, where Vikings and dragons have been enemies for generations. Unlike other warriors in his village, Hiccup doesn't stand out for his physical prowess, but rather his intelligence and innovative mindset.

According to Viking tradition, he must become a dragon hunter, but, instead, he forges an unlikely alliance with a wounded Night Fury dragon (the most feared and mysterious dragon species of all), who he lovingly nicknames "Toothless".

Official Trailer

How to Train Your Dragon (2010): the movie that started it all introduced Hiccup and Toothless and showed us how their unlikely friendship came to be.

How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014): five years after the first movie, Hiccup and his friends explore new horizons and meet a new threat, as well as an important character from Hiccup's past.

How to Train Your Dragon 3 (2019): the final chapter in the trilogy shows Hiccup, now chief of Berk, facing his greatest challenge yet: to protect dragons and find a safe home for them.

The animated TV shows have expanded the universe explored in the movies. They feature the adventures of Hiccup, Toothless, and their friends while they learn more about dragons and the world around them.

DreamWorks Dragons: Riders of Berk (2012-2013): the first season of this animated series shows Hiccup and his friends learning how to coexist with each other and how to train their dragons.

DreamWorks Dragons: Defenders of Berk (2013-2014): the second season of this animated series continues the adventures and challenges of these young Vikings and their dragons.

DreamWorks Dragons: Race to the Edge (2015-2018): this longer, deeper arc was produced exclusively by Netflix and follows Hiccup and his friends as they go on new adventures, discover new dragons, and face new enemies before the events of "How to Train Your Dragon 2".

DreamWorks Dragons: Rescue Riders (2019-2022): a spin-off series for younger audiences that features new protagonists and dragons and is set in a different time than the main trilogy.

DreamWorks Dragons: The Nine Realms (2021-Present): a series set a few centuries in the future, when dragons are once again discovered by a group of kids, including one of Hiccup's descendants.

The 2025 live-action, directed by Dean DeBlois (who also directed the animated trilogy) is supposed to be quite faithful to the original 2010 animated movie. However, the writers changed a few details so they could delve even deeper into the story, and make the live-action experience both more intense and realistic.

Realism: the live-action makes the dragons even more threatening early on, as their attacks are more vicious. The Vikings definitely have good reason to fear them. The initial scene of the Vikings being attacked by the dragons in the sea is longer and more intense in the remake, so the stakes are higher.

Dragon design: Toothless' design is very faithful to the original, but some dragons are slightly different - after all, they had to fit the live-action aesthetic, so they needed to be more realistic but still keep their essence.

Astrid: Astrid's character (played by Nico Parker) has more layers. She is not only Hiccup's rival and romantic interest anymore. Instead, she also clearly shows she wants to become chief someday. In new scenes, she makes Hiccup face his privilege as the chief's son, and tells him he doesn't work as hard as her. This makes her decision to support him even more drastic, as she sacrifices her own chances of becoming Stoick's successor when she does.

The relationship between Stoick and Hiccup: though, in essence, their relationship is the same, the live-action movie explores the tension between them a bit further. Stoick criticizes his son more directly, and their conversations subtly show how their different ideologies and lack of communication drive them apart, despite how much they love each other.

More emotional sequences: the live-action includes longer emotional scenes, such as an intimate conversation between Astrid and Hiccup before his final test in the arena. Hiccup asks Astrid to not intervene if anything goes wrong so she doesn't stain her reputation, which adds more layers to their friendship.

Gobber's leg: in the original animated movie, Gobber loses his right leg and left arm to a dragon. In the live-action, he loses his left leg. This change was made because the actor who played him, Nick Frost, had a knee condition.

Village elder: Berk's village elder plays a larger role in the live-action. She shows up more times and even picks Hiccup as the winner of the final training test.

I've been excited about this live-action since it was announced. I've always loved the animated movies and the relationship between Hiccup and Toothless. This movie brought us back to this Viking universe full of dragons.

Because the same person directed the animated movies and this live-action, it was very faithful to the original story from 2010, which is comforting, as well as a relief. Seeing the same animated characters from before becoming alive on the big screen was magical.

Of course, they had to change a few details to make the story work, and add more drama and action. Mostly, they made the relationship between Hiccup, Astrid, and his father, Stoick, deeper. After watching this movie, we can't help but anxiously await for more live-actions versions of this incredible franchise.

Many movie critics and fans praised this movie for remaining faithful to the spirit of the 2010 animated movie. This is one of this movie's greatest strengths, as they managed to avoid big changes that could anger fans.

Rotten Tomatoes: 78% approval rate in 187 critic reviews, and 98% approval rate in over 5 thousand public reviews.

IMDB: 8,1/10 in over 18 thousand reviews.

Letterboxd: 4,0/5 stars in over 174 thousand reviews.

CinemaScore: at the end of the session, moviegoers gave this movie an A.

If you loved Toothless and Hiccup's story, this live-action will bring you back to Berk to relive the same exciting journey all over again. It managed to add more layers to a few relationships, like Hiccup and Stoick's relationship, and made key moments even more intense.

The flight sequences and dragon battles are breathtaking and exciting. They used the best VFX available and combined it with real locations, like the coast of Ireland, which made the movie more authentic and beautiful, visually speaking.

So, don't waste your time and go to the theaters to watch another great live-action.

Thank you for reading, and see you next time!