Gerard Butler nearly passed on doing the live-action How to Train Your Dragon movie. He actually thought the idea was kinda bad at first. Like, why mess with something people already love? He even said, “Are you guys crazy?” when it was first brought to him. And honestly, a lot of people probably felt the same way.
But what changed things for him was finding out that Dean DeBlois—the guy who directed the animated ones—was coming back for this one too. That gave Butler a bit more trust in the whole thing. He figured, if the original director believed in it, maybe it’s worth giving it a shot. So he signed on and now he’s back as Stoick the Vast.
Filming in Belfast totally won him over
Once he got to Belfast to start filming, everything clicked. Butler said the city felt like it really welcomed him—almost like they adopted him. And it wasn’t just the people. He was super impressed with the sets they built at Belfast Harbour Studios and Titanic Studios. He talked about how crazy detailed everything was, and how it didn’t feel like a typical studio job. You could tell the crew cared deeply about getting the vibe right.
The whole Viking world they were building felt real to him, and that made it easier to jump back into the character. Belfast, in a way, helped sell the whole idea to him even more than the script or the production itself.
The costume was brutal—but kind of funny too
Butler also shared a pretty honest take on how exhausting the filming was. He joked that one day he was chilling in his pajamas, and the next he was sweating under 90 pounds of costume gear—helmet, fur, shield, all of it. He said it was hard work and honestly not very comfortable. But the way he talked about it, you could tell he found some humor in it too.
There’s something really down-to-earth about how he describes that part. Like, yeah, it’s acting, but it’s also sweating for hours in heavy gear while pretending to be a Viking leader. It sounds kind of miserable but also kind of epic in its own way.
The tone of the movie might be a little darker this time
From what Butler’s been saying, this live-action version of How to Train Your Dragon might have a different feel. Not in a bad way, just a bit more serious. He mentioned that it might be darker and that the dragons will probably feel more intense and maybe even scary.
That makes sense, though. It’s a live-action film now, not an animated one, so they’re probably going for something that feels a bit more grounded. But don’t worry—it sounds like the emotional stuff will still be there. The relationships, the adventure—that stuff’s not going anywhere. It's just maybe gonna hit a little harder this time.
