How to Train Your Dragon 2

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How to Train Your Dragon 2
How to Train Your Dragon 2 poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Dean DeBlois
Written byDean DeBlois
Based on How to Train Your Dragon
by Cressida Cowell
Produced by Bonnie Arnold
Starring
Edited byJohn K. Carr
Music by John Powell
Production
company
Distributed by 20th Century Fox
Release dates
  • May 16, 2014 (2014-05-16)(Cannes)
  • June 13, 2014 (2014-06-13)(United States)
Running time
102 minutes [1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$145 million [2]
Box office$621.5 million [3]

How to Train Your Dragon 2 is a 2014 American animated fantasy film loosely based on the book series of the same name by Cressida Cowell. Produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by 20th Century Fox, it is the sequel to How to Train Your Dragon (2010) and the second installment in the trilogy. Written and directed by Dean DeBlois and produced by Bonnie Arnold, the film stars the returning voices of Jay Baruchel, Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, T.J. Miller, and Kristen Wiig, along with Cate Blanchett, Djimon Hounsou, and Kit Harington as new additions. Set five years after the events of the first film, the film follows 20-year-old Hiccup and his friends as young adults as they encounter Valka, Hiccup's long-lost mother, and Drago Bludvist, a madman who wants to conquer the world. [4]

Contents

A sequel to How to Train Your Dragon was announced in April 2010. DeBlois, who co-directed the first film, began drafting the outline in February 2010. He had agreed to return to direct the second film on the condition that he would be allowed to turn it into a trilogy. He cited The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and My Neighbor Totoro (1988) as his main inspirations, with the expanded scope of The Empire Strikes Back being particularly influential. DeBlois and his creative team visited Norway and Svalbard to look for inspirations for the setting. Composer John Powell returned to score the film. The entire voice cast from the first film also returned, while Blanchett and Hounsou signed on to voice Valka and Drago, respectively. How to Train Your Dragon 2 was DreamWorks' first film to use scalable multi-core processing and the studio's new animation and lighting software.

How to Train Your Dragon 2 premiered at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival on May 16, 2014, and was released in the United States on June 13. Like its predecessor, it received acclaim for its animation, voice acting, screenplay, musical score, action sequences, emotional depth, and darker tone compared to its predecessor. It grossed over $621 million worldwide, making it the 12th-highest-grossing film of 2014. It earned less than its predecessor at the US box office, but performed better internationally. The film won the Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Feature Film and six Annie Awards, including Best Animated Feature, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. The final installment in the trilogy, How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World , was released on February 22, 2019.

Plot

Five years after the Viking villagers of Berk and the dragons have made peace, [a] , Hiccup and his Night Fury, Toothless, map out unexplored lands. His father, Stoick the Vast, pressures him to succeed as chieftain, although Hiccup is uncertain as to if he is ready.

While investigating a burnt forest, Hiccup and Astrid discover the remains of a fort encased in ice and meet a group of dragon trappers. Their leader, Eret, attempts to capture their dragons for their employer, Drago Bludvist, who plots to capture and enslave all dragons into becoming his soldiers. Hiccup and Astrid escape and warn Stoick about Drago. As Stoick fortifies Berk to prepare for battle, he explains that he once met Drago at a gathering of chieftains, where Drago had offered them protection from dragons if they pledged to serve him; they denied him, so he had his dragons attack them, with Stoick, the sole survivor.

Hiccup, however, refuses to believe war is inevitable and flies off to talk to Drago with Toothless in search of Drago. They instead meet a mysterious dragon rider, who is revealed to be Hiccup's long-lost mother, Valka, who was assumed to have been killed by a dragon after being carried off during a dragon raid. Valka explains that, like her son, she could not bring herself to slay dragons; she instead rescues them from Drago to bring them to an island nest created out of ice by a gigantic, ice-spewing alpha dragon called a Bewilderbeast, which can control smaller dragons by emitting hypnotic sound waves. Stoick and his lieutenant Gobber track Hiccup to the nest, where Stoick discovers his wife is alive. Meanwhile, Astrid and the other riders force Eret to lead them to Drago, who captures them and their dragons and, learning of Berk's dragons, sends his armada to attack the dragon nest. He also attempts to execute Eret, but Astrid's dragon, Stormfly, saves him. A grateful Eret later helps her and the others escape.

At the nest, a battle ensues between the dragon riders, Valka's dragons, and Drago's armada, during which Drago reveals his own Bewilderbeast to challenge the alpha. The two colossal dragons fight, ending with Drago's Bewilderbeast killing its rival, becoming the new alpha, and seizing control of all the dragons. Hiccup tries to persuade Drago to end the violence, but Drago refutes his idea of coexistence with the dragons and orders his Bewilderbeast to have Toothless kill him. The hypnotized Toothless fires a plasma bolt at Hiccup, but Stoick sacrifices himself to save him. The Bewilderbeast momentarily relinquishes control of Toothless, but Hiccup drives Toothless away in a fit of despair and anger over his father's death. Drago maroons Hiccup and the others on the island, takes control of their dragons, and rides Toothless, again under the control of the Bewilderbeast, to lead his army to conquer Berk. The group holds a Viking funeral for Stoick, and Hiccup, having lost both his father and dragon, is unsure what to do. Valka encouragingly tells him he alone can unite humans and dragons. Inspired by her words and his father's, Hiccup and his allies return to Berk to stop Drago by riding on baby dragons, which are immune to the Bewilderbeast's control.

Back at Berk, they find that Drago has attacked the village and taken control of the dragons. Hiccup frees Toothless from the Bewilderbeast's control and confronts Drago, but the Bewilderbeast encases them in ice. However, Toothless blasts away the ice and enters a glowing, super-powered state, making him immune to the Bewilderbeast's control. Toothless then challenges the Bewilderbeast to protect his rider, repeatedly shooting at it, which breaks its control over the other dragons, who side with Toothless. The dragons fire at the Bewilderbeast until Toothless fires a final massive blast, breaking its left tusk. Defeated, the Bewilderbeast retreats with Drago on its back.

The Vikings and dragons celebrate their victory, and Hiccup is made chieftain of Berk, while the dragons from both Berk and Valka's sanctuary accept Toothless as their new alpha. Berk undergoes repairs, with Hiccup feeling confident that they will defend their peace with their dragons.

Voice cast

Cate Blanchett Cannes 2014 (cropped).jpg
Djimon Hounsou Cannes 2014.jpg
Cate Blanchett and Djimon Hounsou, who joined the cast as Valka and Drago Bludvist, respectively, attending the film's premiere at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival.

Production

Development

After the success of How to Train Your Dragon (2010), the sequel was announced on April 27, 2010. [10] [11] "How to Train Your Dragon … has become DreamWorks Animation's next franchise. We plan to release the sequel theatrically in 2013", said Jeffrey Katzenberg, DreamWorks Animation's CEO. [11] It was later revealed that DeBlois had started drafting the outline for a sequel in February 2010 at Skywalker Ranch, during the final sound mix of the first film. [12] :10 The film was originally scheduled for release on June 20, 2014, but in August 2013 the release date was moved forward one week to June 13, 2014. [13]

Director and writer Dean DeBlois promoting the film at the 2014 WonderCon. Dean DeBlois, 2014 WonderCon-1.jpg
Director and writer Dean DeBlois promoting the film at the 2014 WonderCon.

The film was written, directed, and executive produced by Dean DeBlois, the co-writer/co-director of the first film.[ citation needed ] Bonnie Arnold, the producer of the first film, also returned, while Chris Sanders, who co-directed and co-wrote the first film, acted only as an additional executive producer this time due to his involvement with The Croods (2013). [14] When offered the sequel, DeBlois accepted it on condition he could turn it into a trilogy. For the sequel, he intended to revisit the films of his youth, with The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and My Neighbor Totoro (1988) [15] having the pivotal inspirations for the film. [16] "What I loved especially about Empire is that it expanded Star Wars (1977) in every direction: emotionally, its scope, characters, fun. It felt like an embellishment and that's the goal." [17]

The entire original voice cast—Baruchel, Butler, Ferguson, Ferrera, Hill, Mintz-Plasse, Miller and Wiig—returned for the sequel. [18] On June 19, 2012, it was announced that Kit Harington, of Game of Thrones fame, was cast as one of the film's antagonists. [9] At the 2013 San Diego Comic-Con, it was announced that Cate Blanchett and Djimon Hounsou had joined the cast; they lent their voices to Valka and Drago Bludvist, respectively. [19]

While the first film was set in a generic North Sea environment, the creative team decided to focus on Norway this time around. Early in the sequel's development, about a dozen of them traveled there for a week-long research trip, where they toured Oslo, Bergen and the fjords. [12] :12–13 DeBlois, together with Gregg Taylor (DreamWorks' head of feature development) and Roger Deakins (a cinematographer who served as visual consultant), then broke off from the group to visit Svalbard and see polar bears in the wild with the assistance of armed guides. [12] :12–16

DeBlois explained that he had learned from directing Lilo & Stitch (2002) that "if you set an animated film in a place you want to visit, there's a chance you might get to go there." [12] :14 He had wanted to visit Svalbard for some time, after learning of its stark beauty from a couple of backpackers he met during earlier visits to Iceland to work with post-rock band Sigur Rós on the documentary film Heima (2007). [12] :14

An early draft for the film had Gobber the Belch being the one killed by the brainwashed Toothless under Drago Bludvist's orders instead of Stoick the Vast. However, when DeBlois shared his plot outline as originally envisioned to his colleague Guillermo del Toro, who had enjoyed the first film, del Toro suggested instead to have Stoick killed over Gobber, as Stoick had "exhausted" his narrative contribution and would represent a "crutch" for Hiccup if he were to become chief. DeBlois ultimately felt this was a right decision for the story and del Toro was given a "Thank you" credit. [20]

Animation

During a visit to DreamWorks Animation in November 2013, U.S. President Barack Obama tried a motion capture camera of the kind used to capture live-action reference performance for the film. Barack Obama, How to Train Your Dragon 2, DreamWorks Animation, 2013.jpg
During a visit to DreamWorks Animation in November 2013, U.S. President Barack Obama tried a motion capture camera of the kind used to capture live-action reference performance for the film.

Over the five years before the film's release, [22] DreamWorks Animation had substantially overhauled its production workflow and animation software. How to Train Your Dragon 2 was the first DreamWorks Animation film that used "scalable multicore processing", developed together with Hewlett-Packard. Called by Katzenberg as "the next revolution in filmmaking", it enabled artists for the first time to work on rich, complex images in real time, instead of waiting eight hours to see the results the next day. [23] The film was also the studio's first film to use its new animation and lighting software through the entire production. Programs named Premo [24] and Torch allowed much more subtlety, improving facial animation and enabling "the sense of fat, jiggle, loose skin, the sensation of skin moving over muscle instead of masses moving together." [25]

By the time production was complete, over 500 people had worked on the film at DreamWorks Animation's headquarters in Glendale, as well as its branch offices at PDI/DreamWorks in Redwood City and DreamWorks India in Bangalore. [12] :158–159

Release

Dean DeBlois, Jay Baruchel, and America Ferrera at an advanced screening of the film for military members and their families on June 4, 2014, at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst. Dean DeBlois, Jay Baruchel and America Ferrara, Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst 2014.jpg
Dean DeBlois, Jay Baruchel, and America Ferrera at an advanced screening of the film for military members and their families on June 4, 2014, at Joint Base McGuire–Dix–Lakehurst.

The film was screened out of competition on May 16, 2014, at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival. [27] In the United States, the film premiered on June 8, 2014, at the Regency Village Theater in Los Angeles, and was theatrically released on June 13, 2014. [28] The film was also digitally remastered into IMAX 3D and released to international theaters on June 13, 2014. [29]

Home media

How to Train Your Dragon 2 was released digitally on October 21, 2014, and was subsequently released on DVD and Blu-ray (both 2D and 3D) on November 11. [30] The Blu-ray and digital releases are accompanied by a new animated short film entitled Dawn of the Dragon Racers (2014), in which Hiccup and friends compete to become the first Dragon Racing Champion of Berk. [30]

A double DVD pack with the film and Dawn of the Dragon Racers was released exclusively at Walmart stores. [31] As of February 2015, 7.5 million home entertainment units have been sold worldwide. [32]

On January 22, 2019, Universal Pictures Home Entertainment [b] released a 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray version of How to Train Your Dragon 2 alongside its predecessor, making them the first catalog DreamWorks Animation films to be released on that format. [33]

Reception

Critical response

Review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film an approval rating of 92% based on reviews from 187 critics, with an average rating of 7.8/10. The website's critical consensus states: "Exciting, emotionally resonant, and beautifully animated, How to Train Your Dragon 2 builds on its predecessor's successes just the way a sequel should." [34] Metacritic gives the film a score of 77 out of 100 based on reviews from 48 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". [35] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore during the opening weekend gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale. [36] Audiences were a mix of 47% female and 53% male. Children and Young Adults responded most strongly, with those aged under 25 giving a grade A+. [37] [38]

At the 2014 Cannes Film Festival, Peter Debruge of Variety praised the film and its ambitions: "The pressures to make a giant four-quadrant monstrosity must be enormous, and yet, like his unflappable hero Hiccup, How to Train Your Dragon 2 writer-director Dean DeBlois has prevailed, serving up DreamWorks Animation's strongest sequel yet—one that breathes fresh fire into the franchise, instead of merely rehashing the original. Braver than Brave , more fun than Frozen , and more emotionally satisfying than so many of its live-action counterparts, Dragon delivers. And good thing, too, since DWA desperately needs another toon to cross the half-billion-dollar threshold." [39] Elizabeth Weitzman of the New York Daily News gave the film three out of five stars, saying "It's the unflinching edge that gives the film its unexpected depth." [40] Jocelyn Noveck of the Associated Press gave the film three out of four stars, saying "How to Train Your Dragon 2 doesn't play it safe, and that's why it's the rare sequel that doesn't feel somewhat stale." [41] Joe McGovern of Entertainment Weekly gave the film a B, saying "The flight path needs straightening, but this is still a franchise that knows how to fly." [42] Jody Mitori of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch gave the film three out of four stars, saying "For audiences who want a sweet story, they can't beat the first film of a boy finding his best friend. For those who are ready for the next stage, try this one about a boy becoming a man." [43]

Bill Goodykoontz of The Arizona Republic gave the film four out of five stars, saying "It seemed as if there was nowhere new to go after the first film, but this is a richer story that dares to go darker and is thus more rewarding." [44] Peter Travers of Rolling Stone gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, saying "Dragon 2, like The Empire Strikes Back, takes sequels to a new level of imagination and innovation. It truly is a high-flying, depth-charging wonder to behold." [45] Peter Hartlaub of the San Francisco Chronicle gave the film three out of four stars, saying "DeBlois, who also wrote the script, successfully juggles the multiple story lines, shifting allegiances and uncharted lands." [46] Rafer Guzman of Newsday gave the film three out of four stars, saying "Gruesome? A little. Scary? You bet. But that's exactly what makes the Dragon films so different, and so much better, than the average children's fare." [47] Michael Phillips of the Chicago Tribune gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, saying "For once, we have an animated sequel free of the committee-job vibe so common at every animation house, no matter the track record." [48] Stephen Holden of The New York Times gave the film a negative review, saying "The story seems to be going somewhere until it comes to a halt with the inevitable showdown between the forces of darkness and the forces of light." [49] Peter Howell of the Toronto Star gave the film three out of four stars, saying "Taking its cues as much from Star Wars and Game of Thrones as from its own storybook narrative, How to Train Your Dragon 2 breathes fire into a franchise sequel." [50]

Claudia Puig of USA Today gave the film three out of four stars, saying "Nearly as exuberant as the original, How to Train Your Dragon 2 nimbly avoids sequel-itis." [51] Colin Covert of the Star Tribune gave the film four out of four stars, saying: "The impressive part is the storytelling confidence of writer/director Dean DeBlois. He has created a thoughtful tale as meaningful for grown-ups as it is pleasurable for its young primary audience." [52] Stephanie Merry of The Washington Post gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, saying "This may be the first and last time anyone says this, but if How to Train Your Dragon 2 is this good, why stop at 3 and 4?" [53] Moira MacDonald of The Seattle Times gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, saying: "Young and old fans of the first movie will be lining up for the wit, for the inventiveness of the characters, for the breathtaking visuals — and just the sheer fun of it all." [54] Tirdad Derakhshani of The Philadelphia Inquirer gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, saying: "One of this year's true surprises, the superior animated sequel not only is infused with the same independent spirit and off-kilter aesthetic that enriched the original, it also deepens the first film's major themes." [55] Stephen Whitty of the Newark Star-Ledger gave the film two-and-a-half stars out of four, saying: "This was not a sequel that anybody needed, outside of the accountants. And there's another already planned." [56] John Semley of The Globe and Mail gave the film four out of four stars, saying: "More than just teaching kids what to think about the world they're coming into, it's a rare film that encourages them to think for themselves." [57]

Rene Rodriguez of the Miami Herald gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, saying: "How to Train Your Dragon 2 is its own standalone picture, with a surprising range of emotions that surpasses the original and a brisk pace and manner of storytelling that give it purpose and direction. The fact that it's also so much fun, no matter what your age, almost feels like a bonus." [58] Bill Zwecker of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film four out of four stars, saying: "Not only does this second movie match the charm, wit, animation skill and intelligent storytelling of the original, I think it even exceeds it." [59] Lisa Kennedy of The Denver Post gave the film a positive review, saying: "How to Train Your Dragon 2 is soaring, emotionally swooping, utterly satisfying fun." [60] Bob Mondello of NPR gave the film an 8.5 out of 10, saying: "It's clear that [director Dean DeBlois] took inspiration from the first Star Wars trilogy—not a bad model for breathing new life, and yes, a bit of fire, into one of Hollywood's more nuanced animated franchises." [61] Inkoo Kang of The Wrap gave the film a mixed review, saying: "If there isn't enough to feel, at least there's a lot to look at. Thanks to the superb 3-D direction by DeBlois, we swoop through the air, whoosh down dragons' tails, and juuust baaaarely[ sic ] squeeze into small crevices, but still, those experiences are only like being on a really great rollercoaster—they don't mean anything." [62] A. A. Dowd of The A.V. Club gave the film a B−, saying: "There aren't just more dragons, but more characters, more plot, more everything. The trade-off is that the charm of the original gets a little lost, a casualty of rapid-franchise expansion." [63]

Box office

How to Train Your Dragon 2 grossed $177 million in North America, and $441.9 million in other countries, for a worldwide total of $618.9 million. [3] The film is the second-highest-grossing animated film of 2014, behind Big Hero 6, and the twelfth-highest-grossing film of the year in any genre. [3] [64] [65] While How to Train Your Dragon 2 only earned $177 million at the US box office, compared to $217 million for its predecessor, [66] it performed much better at the international box office, earning $438 million to How to Train Your Dragon's $277 million. Calculating in all expenses, Deadline Hollywood estimated that the film made a profit of $107.3 million. [67]

In the United States and Canada, the film earned $18.5 million on its opening day, [68] and opened at number two in its first weekend, with $49,451,322. [69] In its second weekend, the film dropped to number three, grossing an additional $24,719,312. [70] In its third weekend, the film stayed at number three, grossing $13,237,697. [71] In its fourth weekend, the film dropped to number five, grossing $8,961,088. [72]

Its $25.9 million opening weekend in China was the biggest-ever for an animated film in the country, surpassing the record previously held by Kung Fu Panda 2 . [73]

Accolades

Accolades received by How to Train Your Dragon 2
AwardDate of ceremonyCategoryRecipient(s)ResultRef.
3D Creative Arts Awards January 28, 2015Best Feature Film – AnimationHow to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [74]
Best Stereoscopic Feature Film – AnimationHow to Train Your Dragon 2Won [75]
Academy Awards February 22, 2015 Best Animated Feature Dean DeBlois and Bonnie Arnold Nominated [76]
Annie Awards January 31, 2015 Best Animated Feature How to Train Your Dragon 2Won [77]
Outstanding Achievement for Animated Effects in an Animated Production James Jackson, Lucas Janin, Tobin Jones, Baptiste Van Opstal, and Jason MayerNominated
Outstanding Achievement for Character Animation in a Feature Production Fabio LigniniWon
Steven HornbyNominated
Thomas GrummtNominated
Outstanding Achievement for Directing in a Feature Production Dean DeBlois Won
Outstanding Achievement for Music in a Feature Production John Powell and Jónsi Won
Outstanding Achievement for Storyboarding in a Feature Production Truong Son MaiWon
Outstanding Achievement for Writing in an Animated Feature Production Dean DeBlois Nominated
Outstanding Achievement for Editorial in an Animated Feature Production John K. CarrWon
ASCAP Awards March 9, 2015Top Box Office Films John Powell [c] Won [78]
British Academy Children's Awards November 23, 2014Kid's Vote — FilmHow to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [79] [80]
Feature Film How to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated
Chicago Film Critics Association Awards December 15, 2014 Best Animated Film How to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [81]
Cinema Audio Society Awards February 14, 2015 Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Motion Picture – Animated Tighe Sheldon, Randy Thom, Shawn Murphy, Brandon Proctor, and Corey TylerNominated [82] [83]
Critics' Choice Movie Awards January 15, 2015 Best Animated Feature How to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [84]
Florida Film Critics Circle Awards December 19, 2014 Best Animated Film How to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [85] [86]
Georgia Film Critics Association Awards January 9, 2015Best Animated FilmHow to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [87]
Golden Globe Awards January 11, 2015 Best Animated Feature Film How to Train Your Dragon 2Won [88]
Golden Reel Awards February 15, 2015 Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing – Sound Effects, Foley, Dialogue and ADR for Animated Feature Film Randy Thom, Michael Silvers, Al Nelson, Brian Chumney, Sean England, Robin Harlan, Mac Smith, Jeremy Bowker, Pascal Garneau, and Sue FoxNominated [89] [90]
Golden Trailer Awards May 30, 2014Best Animation/Family"Master" (Aspect Ratio)Nominated [91] [92]
Hollywood Film Awards November 14, 2014 Hollywood Animation AwardHow to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [93]
Hollywood Music in Media Awards November 4, 2014 Original Score – Animated Film John Powell Won [94] [95]
Original Song – Animated Film John Powell and Jónsi for "Where No One Goes"Nominated
Houston Film Critics Society Awards January 10, 2015 Best Animated FilmHow to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [96] [97]
International Cinephile Society Awards February 20, 2015Best Animated FilmHow to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [98] [99]
International Film Music Critics Association Awards February 19, 2015 Film Score of the Year John Powell Nominated [100] [101]
Best Original Score for an Animated Film John Powell Won
Film Music Composition of the Year John Powell for "Flying with Mother"Won
National Board of Review December 2, 2014 Best Animated Film How to Train Your Dragon: 2Won [102]
Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards March 28, 2015 Favorite Animated Movie How to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [103]
Online Film Critics Society Awards December 15, 2014 Best Animated Film How to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [104] [105]
People's Choice Awards January 7, 2015 Favorite Family MovieHow to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [106]
Producers Guild of America Awards January 24, 2015 Best Animated Motion Picture How to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [107]
San Diego Film Critics Society Awards December 15, 2014 Best Animated FilmHow to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [81]
San Francisco Film Critics Circle Awards December 14, 2014 Best Animated Feature How to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [81]
Satellite Awards February 15, 2015 Best Animated or Mixed Media Feature How to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [108]
Saturn Awards June 25, 2015 Best Animated Film How to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [109]
Seattle International Film Festival Awards June 7, 2014Golden Space Needle Award – Best FilmHow to Train Your Dragon 2Second runner-up [110]
St. Louis Film Critics Association Awards December 15, 2014 Best Animated Film How to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [111] [112]
Toronto Film Critics Association Awards December 15, 2014 Best Animated Film How to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [113]
Visual Effects Society Awards February 4, 2015 Outstanding Visual Effects in an Animated Feature Bonnie Arnold, Dean DeBlois, Dave Walvoord, and Simon Otto Nominated [114] [115]
Outstanding Animated Character in an Animated Feature Jakob Hjort Jensen, Fabio Lignini, Stephen Candell, and Hongseo Park for "Hiccup"Nominated
Outstanding Created Environment in an Animated Feature Sun Yoon, Liang-Yuan Wang, Ted Davis, and Shannon Thomas for "Oasis"Nominated
Outstanding Effects Simulations in an Animated FeatureSpencer Knapp, Baptiste Van Opstal, Lucas Janin, and Jason Mayer for "The Battle"Nominated
Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Awards December 8, 2014 Best Animated Feature How to Train Your Dragon 2Nominated [81]

Music

Composer John Powell, who earned his first Academy Award nomination for his music in the original movie, returned to score the sequel. Powell described the project as "a maturation story" and stated that he too tried to achieve the same maturation in the structure of his music by developing further every aspect of his compositions from the original film. [116] Recording took place during April 2014 at Abbey Road Studios in London [117] with a 120-piece orchestra, a 100-voice choir, [118] and a wide array of ethnic instruments, including Celtic harp, uilleann bagpipes, tin whistle, bodhrán, and Highland bagpipes; the latter of which were performed by pipers from the Scottish group Red Hot Chilli Pipers. [19] The ensemble was conducted by the composer's usual collaborator Gavin Greenaway. [118]

Sigur Rós' lead vocalist, Jónsi, who wrote and performed the song "Sticks & Stones" for the first film, provided two new original songs for the sequel in collaboration with Powell: "For the Dancing and the Dreaming" (performed by Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson and Mary Jane Wells) and "Where No One Goes" (performed by Jónsi himself). [19] Belarusian-Norwegian artist Alexander Rybak, who voices Hiccup in the Norwegian dub of the film, also wrote and performed the song "Into a Fantasy", which is only featured in the European versions of the film. [119]

The soundtrack album for the film was released on June 13, 2014, by Relativity Music Group. [120] The album features over an hour of score by Powell; additional music by Anthony Willis and Paul Mounsey, as well as the two original songs written by Powell and Jónsi. Rybak's song "Into a Fantasy" was released separately as a single. A deluxe edition, consisting of previously unreleased music, was released by Varèse Sarabande in May 2022. [121]

Sequel

The third and final installment in the trilogy, How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, was released on February 22, 2019; [122] the release date had been changed multiple times due to various distributor changes. [d] DeBlois, Arnold, Powell and all of the main cast (with the exception of Miller, whose role was recast to Justin Rupple) returned for the third film, [127] with Blanchett and Harington reprising their roles from the second. [128] [129] F. Murray Abraham joined the cast as Grimmel. [130]

Notes

  1. As depicted in How to Train Your Dragon (2010)
  2. In 2018, Universal Pictures acquired the rights from 20th Century Fox, who released the film.
  3. Also for Rio 2 (2014)
  4. Attributed to multiple references: [123] [124] [125] [126]

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DreamWorks Animation LLC (DWA) (also known as DreamWorks Animation Studios or simply DreamWorks) is an American animation studio owned by Universal Pictures, a division of NBCUniversal, which is itself a subsidiary of Comcast. The studio has released a total of 49 feature films, including several of the highest-grossing animated films of all time, with Shrek 2 (2004) having been the highest at the time of its release. Its first film, Antz, was released on October 2, 1998, and its latest film, The Wild Robot, was released on September 27, 2024. They have an upcoming theatrical slate of films, which includes Dog Man on January 31, 2025, How to Train Your Dragon on June 13, 2025, The Bad Guys 2 on August 1, 2025, Gabby's Dollhouse: The Movie on September 26, 2025, and Shrek 5 on July 1, 2026.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Sanders</span> American filmmaker (born 1962)

Christopher Michael Sanders is an American filmmaker, animator, and voice actor. His credits include Lilo & Stitch (2002) and How to Train Your Dragon (2010), both of which he co-wrote and directed with Dean DeBlois; The Croods (2013) with Kirk DeMicco; The Call of the Wild (2020); and The Wild Robot (2024). He created the character Stitch in 1985, wrote the film's story, and voiced Stitch in almost all his media appearances.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dean DeBlois</span> Canadian filmmaker (born 1970)

Dean Allan DeBlois is a Canadian filmmaker and animator. He is best known for writing and directing the Oscar-nominated animated feature films Lilo & Stitch for Walt Disney Animation Studios, the How to Train Your Dragon film trilogy for DreamWorks Animation, and directing the documentary Heima about the Icelandic band Sigur Rós.

<i>How to Train Your Dragon</i> (novel series) Series of childrens books written by Cressida Cowell

How to Train Your Dragon is a series of children's books written by British author Cressida Cowell. The books are set in a fictional Fantasy Viking world, and focus on the experiences of protagonist Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, as he overcomes obstacles on his journey of "becoming a hero, the hard way". The books were published by Hodder Children's Books in the UK and by Little, Brown and Company in the US. The first book was published in 2003 and the 12th and final one in 2015. By 2015, the series had sold more than seven million copies around the world. The books have subsequently been adapted into a media franchise consisting of three animated feature films, several television series and other media, all produced by DreamWorks Animation.

<i>How to Train Your Dragon</i> (2010 film) Film by Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois

How to Train Your Dragon is a 2010 American animated fantasy film loosely based on the 2003 novel of the same name by Cressida Cowell. Produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by Paramount Pictures, it was directed by Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois, who co-wrote the screenplay with Will Davies, and produced by Bonnie Arnold. The film stars the voices of Jay Baruchel, Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, T.J. Miller, and Kristen Wiig. The story takes place in Berk, a mythical Viking village; Hiccup, an undersized teen wishing to become a dragon slayer like the other Vikings, injures a rare Night Fury dragon but is unable to bring himself to kill it. He instead helps and befriends the dragon, and quickly discovers that things are not exactly as they seem in the conflict between Vikings and dragons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Powell (film composer)</span> English film composer

John Powell is an English composer best known for his film scores. He has been based in Los Angeles since 1997 and has composed the scores to over 70 feature films. He is best known for composing score for films, including Face/Off, the Bourne film series, the Happy Feet films, United 93, X-Men: The Last Stand, Wicked and its upcoming sequel, Evolution, Dr. Seuss' The Lorax, Migration, Drumline, Hancock, The Call of the Wild, Bolt, eight Blue Sky Studios films, and nine DreamWorks Animation films.

The 38th Annual Annie Awards honoring the best in animation of 2010 was held February 5, 2011, at Royce Hall in Los Angeles, California. DreamWorks Animation's How to Train Your Dragon was the big winner winning 10 out of its 15 nominations, sparking a big controversy over Disney and Pixar's boycott.

<i>How to Train Your Dragon</i> (soundtrack) 2010 soundtrack album by John Powell

How to Train Your Dragon: Music from the Motion Picture is a soundtrack album composed by John Powell for the film of the same name and released by Varèse Sarabande on March 23, 2010. The score earned Powell his first Academy Award nomination and his third BAFTA nomination, which he lost to The Social Network and The King's Speech, respectively. The score also won the International Film Music Critics Association 2011 Awards for Best Original Score for an Animated Feature and Film Score of the Year, and was nominated twice for Film Music Composition of the Year for the tracks "Forbidden Friendship" and "Test Drive". The soundtrack received wide acclaim from professional music critics.

<i>How to Train Your Dragon</i> DreamWorks Animation media franchise

How to Train Your Dragon is an American media franchise from DreamWorks Animation and loosely based on the eponymous book series of the same name by British author Cressida Cowell. It consists of three feature films: How to Train Your Dragon (2010), How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014), and How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World (2019). The franchise also contains five short films: Legend of the Boneknapper Dragon (2010), Book of Dragons (2011), Gift of the Night Fury (2011), Dawn of the Dragon Racers (2014), and How to Train Your Dragon: Homecoming (2019). A live-action remake of the first film is scheduled for release by Universal Pictures in June 2025.

<i>Gift of the Night Fury</i> 2011 American film

Gift of the Night Fury is a 2011 American animated short film by DreamWorks Animation and directed by Tom Owens. It was released on November 15, 2011 on DVD and Blu-ray, along with another original animated short film Book of Dragons.

Dragons, commonly referred to as DreamWorks Dragons, is an American animated television series based on the 2010 film How to Train Your Dragon. The series serves as a bridge between the first film and its 2014 sequel.

<i>How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World</i> 2019 DreamWorks Animation film

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World is a 2019 American animated fantasy film loosely based on the book series by Cressida Cowell. Produced by DreamWorks Animation and distributed by Universal Pictures, it is the sequel to How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014) and the final film in the How to Train Your Dragon trilogy. Written and directed by Dean DeBlois and produced by Bonnie Arnold and Brad Lewis, the film stars the voices of Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, Cate Blanchett, Craig Ferguson, and F. Murray Abraham, with Gerard Butler, Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Kristen Wiig, Justin Rupple, and Kit Harington in supporting roles. The film follows 21-year old Hiccup seeking a dragon utopia known as the "Hidden World" while coming to terms with Toothless's new bond with a female Fury, as they deal with the threat of Grimmel the Grisly, a ruthless dragon hunter.

<i>Dawn of the Dragon Racers</i> 2014 American film

Dawn of the Dragon Racers is a 2014 animated short film by DreamWorks Animation and directed by Elaine Bogan and John Sanford. Based on the How to Train Your Dragon novel and film series, the short features the voices of Jay Baruchel and America Ferrera along with the cast from the television series.

<i>How to Train Your Dragon: Homecoming</i> 2019 American animated short film

How to Train Your Dragon: Homecoming is a 2019 animated short film by DreamWorks and directed by Tim Johnson. Set before the epilogue of the third film, it was both released on DVD and aired on NBC on December 3, 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Simon Otto</span> Swiss animator

Simon Otto is a Swiss film director and animator. He is best known for working as the Head of Character Animation of the Oscar-nominated How to Train Your Dragon film trilogy for DreamWorks Animation.

<i>How to Train Your Dragon 2</i> (soundtrack) 2014 soundtrack album by John Powell

How to Train Your Dragon 2: Music from the Motion Picture is a soundtrack album to the 2014 film How to Train Your Dragon 2, and was released by Relativity Music Group on June 13, 2014. The film is a sequel to the 2010 film How to Train Your Dragon, which itself based on the British book series of the same name by Cressida Cowell, and is the second instalment in the How to Train Your Dragon film series. The score is composed by John Powell, who also scored for its predecessor. In addition to the original score featured, Powell also collaborated with Jónsi, to write two songs for the film, which were performed by Jónsi, Gerard Butler, Craig Ferguson and Mary Jane Wells, while a song "Into a Fantasy" performed by Alexander Rybak was released on June 9, and was included in the European version of the soundtrack. Much like the score of the first instalment, this score received critical acclaim praising Powell for his work in the film. A limited edition soundtrack was published by Varèse Sarabande label in May 2022. It featured previously unedited cues and demos from the compositions.

<i>How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World</i> (soundtrack) 2019 film score by John Powell

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World is the score album to the 2019 film How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, the sequel to How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014) and the third and final installment in the How to Train Your Dragon trilogy. Recurring DreamWorks composer John Powell, who scored for the previous two installments of the series, returned for the third film. The album features an original song, "Together from Afar" performed by Jónsi, which was released as a single on January 31, 2019. The album was released on February 1 by Back Lot Music, and was met with a positive response from music critics.

<i>How to Train Your Dragon</i> (2025 film) Upcoming film by Dean DeBlois

How to Train Your Dragon is an upcoming American fantasy film written, co-produced, and directed by Dean DeBlois. It is a live-action remake of DreamWorks Animation's 2010 animated film How to Train Your Dragon, which itself was loosely based on the 2003 novel How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell. The film stars Mason Thames, Nico Parker, Nick Frost, Julian Dennison, Gabriel Howell, Bronwyn James, Harry Trevaldwyn, Ruth Codd, Peter Serafinowicz, and Murray McArthur, with Gerard Butler reprising his role as Stoick the Vast from the animated films. It is the first live action production from DreamWorks Animation, as well as the first DreamWorks Animation production to be a remake.

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