When my colleague Tim Gordon and I spoke with How to Train Your Dragon director Dean DeBlois a few years ago, it was clear his intention to complete a trilogy of stories following Hiccup and his Night Fury companion, Toothless. The films have proven incredibly successful for Dreamworks, launching an entire multimedia franchise that could last years. So will How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World truly be the final chapter? Or the start of something new?
The first trailer has arrived and it finds Hiccup (Jay Baruchel), now secure in his position as chief, as his pal Toothless discovers he’s not the last of his kind. The discovery of a new dragon world threatens to break apart their friendship as Toothless must consider becoming a leader in his own right.
These movies continue to be absolutely stunning, and it doesn’t look as if DeBlois has messed with the formula too much. I’m surprised by how much this trailer gives away so here’s hoping they’ve kept at least a few surprises. Here’s the official synopsis:
What began as an unlikely friendship between an adolescent Viking and a fearsome Night Fury dragon has become an epic trilogy spanning their lives. In this next chapter, Hiccup and Toothless will finally discover their true destinies: the village chief as ruler of Berk alongside Astrid, and the dragon as leader of his own kind. As both ascend, the darkest threat they’ve yet faced—as well as the appearance of a female Night Fury—will test the bonds of their relationship like never before.
Featuring the voices of America Ferrera, Cate Blanchett, Kit Harington, TJ Miller, Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Craig Ferguson, and F. Murray Abraham, How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World opens March 1st 2019.
