Dean DeBlois on Reimagining a Modern Animated Classic for Live Action

Seventeen years after launching one of animation’s most beloved franchises, Dean DeBlois returns to How to Train Your Dragon for a bold new chapter: a live-action adaptation that’s bigger, more immersive, and emotionally resonant. In this episode of Seen on the Screen, Jacqueline Coley sits down with the Oscar-nominated writer and director to discuss bringing the world of Hiccup and Toothless into live action. Candid and full of gems, Dean reflects on a career that’s taken him from animation desks to directing large-scale practical effects—including the massive animatronic Toothless used in flight sequences. He explains how The Empire Strikes Back influenced How to Train Your Dragon 2, how Mulan helped shape Hiccup’s emotional arc, and what it was like casting a new generation of actors, including Mason Thames and Nico Parker. Looking back on his journey—from early creative struggles to seeing the Isle of Berk turned into a theme park—Dean reflects on the risks he’s taken, the lessons he’s learned, and the power of storytelling that keeps evolving, no matter the medium. How to Train Your Dragon hits theaters and IMAX on June 13.