The live-action How to Train Your Dragon remake has been a hit with audiences, but has struggled a little bit with critics. Just like the recently released Lilo & Sтιтch remake, the live-action version of How to Train Your Dragon will definitely be one of the most profitable movies of the summer. During its opening weekend, How to Train Your Dragon grossed $83 million at the domestic box office, and its dominance won’t stop anytime soon. Reviews for How to Train Your Dragon have been quite good, with Screen Rant’s own Sarah Moran giving it an 8 out of 10.

Overall, most critics have enjoyed the How to Train Your Dragon remake. However, its 78% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes proves that some reviewers haven’t been huge fans of the live-action film. This critics score is notable, especially when compared to its near-perfect audience score of 98% (via Rotten Tomatoes). How to Train Your Dragon’s audience score actually set a new record for the franchise, surpᴀssing the original movie’s 91%. Therefore, let’s take a look at why critics and audiences are slightly divided when it comes to the live-action How to Train Your Dragon remake.

What Critics Liked & Disliked About How To Train Your Dragon

Is The New Remake Too Similar To The Original Animated Movie?

Even though the critics score for the live-action How to Train Your Dragon remake is much lower than any of the animated movies, it is still quite solid. Currently, the remake is “Certified Fresh” on Rotten Tomatoes, which suggests it has been a significant critical success. Overall, critics have applauded the live-action film for remaining faithful to the original animated movie, and also being just as fun to watch. However, some critics have pointed out that the How to Train Your Dragon remake is perhaps too faithful to the original.

For instance, ScreenCrush’s Matt Singer claimed that the movie “plays like cinematic déjà vu.” Additionally, Rolling Stone’s David Fear wrote, “What this movie is actually trying to accomplish, beyond a shadow of a doubt, is how to train their audiences to keep buying the same thing over, and over, and over again.” Therefore, it’s clear that some critics have argued that the live-action How to Train Your Dragon remake has no artistic merit since it is basically an exact copy of the original movie. This is precisely why the film’s Rotten Tomatoes critics score is significantly lower.

Why How To Train Your Dragon’s Audience Score Is Near-Perfect

How To Train Your Dragon Is A Fun Time At The Theaters

While some reviewers may criticize the live-action How to Train Your Dragon remake for being a copy of the original movie, that is what a lot of general audiences love about the film. Typically, fans do not like it when major changes are made to the original movie in live-action remakes. For example, the aforementioned Lilo & Sтιтch faced some backlash for making significant changes to Jumba. Therefore, the audience score for How to Train Your Dragon is likely so high because it evoked the same emotions from fans as the original animated movie.

When considering that the live-action How to Train Your Dragon remake was directed by Dean DeBlois, who also co-directed the 2010 animated film, it makes sense that there weren’t a lot of major changes made to the story. In addition to appreciating the movie’s respect for the original animated film, fans have also praised the acting, production and costume design, and visual effects in the live-action How to Train Your Dragon film. Specifically, audiences love how great all the dragons look in the new movie.

How To Train Your Dragon’s RT Audience Score Is Great For The Franchise

Another Live-Action How To Train Your Dragon Movie Is On The Way

Overall, while some critics may strongly believe that the live-action How to Train Your Dragon remake was unnecessary since it barely makes any changes to the original, general audiences have still been having a great time at the theaters. It’s Rotten Tomatoes critics score may be slightly lower than expected, but the remake was graded an A on CinemaScore. Therefore, the new How to Train Your Dragon movie is undoubtedly a huge success and will continue to perform well at the box office.

This bodes well for the future of the franchise. Even before the release of the remake, it was announced that a sequel to How to Train Your Dragon has been greenlit. The second How to Train Your Dragon live-action movie is currently slated to be released on June 11, 2027. Since it will once again be directed by DeBlois, the sequel will likely remain very faithful to the second animated movie. Therefore, despite some criticisms of the first live-action film, the future of the How to Train Your Dragon franchise seems very bright.

Sources: SlashFilm, Rolling Stone