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There is a lot of pressure on the upcoming live-action remake of How to Train Your Dragon — especially for star Mason Thames, who plays Hiccup in it.
Speaking to ClutchPoints about his new Netflix movie Incoming, Thames revealed his true feelings towards live-action remakes. At the same time, he is a fan of the original movies and calls playing Hiccup a “dream role,” and he says that the How to Train Your Dragon live-action remake is going to stay close to the original.
Live-action remakes are a lucrative business. Disney has churned them out over the last few years, with big winners like The Lion King ($1.6 billion) and Beauty and the Beast ($1.2 billion). Coming up, they will release a live-action remake of Moana, which came out in 2016.
“Pressure” on playing Hiccup
“I've always had a strong opinion about live-action remakes,” said Thames. “But this is something that [was] made with so much love and passion. It is made by the people who made the original movies, and we're keeping it very close to the original and elevating as much as we can from animation to live-action.
“It was a lot of pressure for me because I love Hiccup so much. And I know how many people love the movies, and I didn't want to let anybody down. I've worked as hard as I can to bring Hiccup to life,” he added.
Jay Baruchel voiced Hiccup in the trilogy of animated movies. The How to Train Your Dragon franchise began on the big screen in 2010.
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The first movie almost grossed $500 million at the box office. Both of the following installments made more — the second entry topped $600 million and the third installment made over $520 million.
It is a huge franchise produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by Universal Pictures. Now, it will get the live-action treatment from Dean DeBlois, who directed all three installments of the animated trilogy.
Who is Mason Thames?
Mason Thames first gained notoriety for his role in The Black Phone. Scott Derrickson wrote (with C. Robert Cargill) and directed the horror film. Thames plays Finney, a young boy abducted by the Grabber (Ethan Hawke). Madeline McGraw (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood) stars as Thames' on-screen sister, Gwen.
This was the big screen debut of Thames, who previously starred in several episodes of For All Mankind for Apple TV+. Joel Kinnaman leads the series, which concluded its fourth season in January 2024.
Now, Thames leads Incoming, a new coming-of-age movie for Netflix. Written and directed by Dave Chernin and John Chernin (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia) in their feature directorial debut, it follows a group of boys going to their first house party.
Thames plays the leader of the group, Benj. All four are heading into their freshman year of high school and are looking to make a splash. Raphael Alejandro, Bardia Seiri, and Ramon Reed play the other members of the friend group, Connor, Koosh, and Eddie, respectively. Additionally, Bobby Cannavale plays one of their teachers, Mr. Studebaker.
