How to Train Your Dragon remake casts its two leads

How to Train Your Dragon’s live-action remake has its two human leads – including one who will be familiar to fans of The Last of Us.

As per Deadline, Mason Thames (The Black Phone) will play franchise lead Hiccup, a Viking teenager who befriends a dragon named Toothless – despite wanting to become a dragon slayer himself.

Nico Parker will star alongside him as Hiccup’s classmate Astrid. She previously appeared as Joel’s daughter Sarah in a memorable turn during The Last of Us premiere.

How to Train Your Dragon is set to fly into cinemas on March 14, 2025. It will be based on the wildly-popular DreamWorks franchise – which spawned a billion-dollar trilogy, encompassing video games, stage shows, and a TV series. Dean DeBlois, who co-directed and co-wrote the original 2010 screenplay, will be back to helm the project and pen the script.

It follows on from a recent trend – mostly led by Disney – of animated classics being given the remake treatment. The Little Mermaid has proved a success at the box office, with Moana and Lilo & Stitch making the leap from animation to live-action in cinemas. Other Disney movies, such as Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King, have also been given 21st Century makeovers that have proved wildly successful.

On the animation side of things, DreamWorks still has multiple projects in the works – including Kung Fu Panda 4, Madagascar 4, and a fifth Shrek movie.

For more on what’s coming your way, check out our guide to upcoming movies and the 2023 movie release dates calendar.

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I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.