Gerard Butler speaks on his reaction to his own Stoick look for the live-action How to Train Your Dragon. After providing his vocal talents as a voice actor in the animated movies, Butler returns to the Isle of Berk to reprise his role for the live-action film. He is joined by a largely new cast that includes Mason Thames, Nico Parker, Nick Frost, Gabriel Howell, Julian Dennison, Bronwyn James, Harry Trevaldwyn, Murray McArthur, Naomi Wirthner, and Ruth Codd. The How to Train Your Dragon live-action movie is set for release on June 13, 2025.

In an interview with ScreenRant, Butler reflects on seeing himself as Stoick for the first time, admitting that he was “scared of [him]self.” He then explained how he had to “live every moment of that beard, mustache, what it all means.” In the process, he “felt transformed” and says that he “became Stoick.” He truly was immersed in the role, and started to “think like him and feel like him.” Check out the full quote from Butler below:

ScreenRant: In terms of the look. You’re like ‘How are they going to do this in live-action?’ He’s so huge and animated – and you look great. So when you saw yourself as Stoick for the first time in the full thing, what was your reaction?

Gerard Butler: Scared of myself.

ScreenRant: [Laughs] Yeah?

Gerard Butler: Who’s that? It was on the one hand like, “Oh wow, this is a lot to live up. You’ve got to bring it.” You’ve got to bring it. You can’t just wear this and then go out and let the side down because you got to live every moment of that beard, mustache, what it all means, what the armor means, how he moves, how he expresses himself. But it also felt amazing. I stepped out and I felt transformed. I became Stoick during this shoot. I was him more than I wasn’t him, and it’s a much more unforgettable way to be. So I’m living that story every day around those sets in that costume and kind of drained like he was. And then you start to think like him and feel like him.

What This Means For The How To Train Your Dragon Live-Action Film

Stoick Is Hard To Render In Live-Action

As the interviewer mentions, putting Stoick in live-action had to be one of the harder tasks of adapting this animated film. A real-life Hiccup could be rendered simply by casting a young, thin person with floppy hair to portray the Berk teenager. Stoick, on the other hand, is exaggeratedly huge in the animated film, allowing him to really dominate in size over his son. From his hat to his long beard, he possesses physical attributes that give him one of the more conventional Viking looks from the animated film.

From the looks of the How to Train Your Dragon trailers, director Dean DeBlois and the rest of his team tried to maintain a lot of those key qualities without directly copying the character. He still has a long beard that is sectioned off by ties, though it looks a little bit more frazzled and less manicured than it did previously. Butler is taller enough than Hiccup actor Thames to still be a dominating physical presence over him. Butler’s quote makes it clear that the hair, makeup, and costuming effects were well-coupled with his immersive performance.

Our Take On Butler’s Transformation For How To Train Your Dragon

The Continuity Between Worlds Is Still Welcome

Stoick provides an interesting opportunity in How to Train Your Dragon since he is the only lead character played by the same actor in live-action and animated films. In a film with so many new faces and so much pressure to live up to its beloved animated predecessors, this could act to provide some much-needed continuity between the animated and live-action worlds. Stoick may not look identical, but his voice will be very similar as Butler returns to his role in the live-action film.

In addition, it’s expected that Butler could add new layers to his iconic role, as he takes on the more live-action version. That’s well hinted at in his comment, which could mean an even more elevated performance from the star. Thus, there is no denying that replicating a character from animated to live-action is difficult, but it also allows actors like Butler to add more creativity to their roles, which hopefully will be demonstrated in How to Train Your Dragon.