Latest news with #StoickTheVast
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Gerard Butler is overcome with emotional as he reveals How To Train Your Dragon film is dedicated to his 'amazing' late mother Margaret
Gerard Butler was overcome with emotion on Thursday as he paid tribute to his late mother Margaret on Magic Radio. The Scottish actor and film producer, 55, stars as Stoick The Vast in the upcoming live-action How To Train Your Dragon movie, which releases Friday. And Gerard revealed director of the film Dean DeBlois has dedicated the movie to Margaret - who sadly passed away before she could see the finished version. Gerard's mother sadly passed away at the age of 81 earlier this year, months before the film premieres. He said: 'I was so excited for her to see it but I had a feeling she wasn't going to make it. So Dean very kindly dedicated the move to her. to stay in the loop. 'If Stoick had a Mum that would have been my Mum, she was an amazing woman. She was strong, she was fiery and she was graceful and she was beautiful. 'I wish the whole world could have met my Mum because she was a really special woman'. He added: 'She knew since I was a kid I wanted to be an actor. 'It's this movie, it really is but it's the opposite I was doing something that I never really loved, never cared about that didn't show any of my uniqueness in any way to be honest and I felt that I had something else going on and she embraced that.' Gerard frequently left his home in Hollywood to visit his mother in the village of Comrie in Perthshire - where she lived for more than 20 years. He previously told the Record he would always return to Scotland to catch up with her and joked she would always 'slap the Hollywood out of him'. 'I sit in the garden, I look up at the mountain ranges and I am just taken aback constantly by how beautiful it is there, and what a great land I come from', he said. 'I just really connect when I get back, and I find that I recharge and knock out all the bull that's going round in my head, all of that Hollywood nonsense. 'I quickly get that slapped out of me.' At the Brazilian premiere of How To Train Your Dragon last month, the movie paid tribute to his mother in the credits after the screening. It read: 'Dedicated to the loving memory of Margaret Coll.' Posting pictures from the premiere later on Instagram, Gerard included the tribute alongside the caption. He wrote: 'Getting weird. Funny face. The boys. And in memory of my dearly beloved mother Margaret Coll.' How to Train Your Dragon is expected to fly to the top of the box office after it's release on Friday. The action-adventure stars Mason Thames, 17, as Hiccup and Nico Parker as Astrid. Based on the performance of the three previous films, the reimagined version is expected to pull in somewhere between $80 million and $100 million domestically according to Box Office Pro. Universal Pictures has already announced a sequel to the anticipated blockbuster. 'They announced a release date and I was like, "Well, that's quite soon,"' Parker said.
Gizmodo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Gizmodo
The Director of ‘How to Train Your Dragon' Talks Beefing Up Gerard Butler's Arc
Director Dean DeBlois and star Gerard Butler reunite for Universal Pictures' live-action adaptation of How to Train Your Dragon out later this week. The filmmaker sat down with io9 to discuss the unique opportunity he and Butler had in re-imagining the role of Stoick the Vast, Berk's Viking leader with staunch Dragon hunting inclinations who's also a single dad to his overprotected son Hiccup (Mason Thames). DeBlois explained his approach to directing Butler in the live-action feature. 'I think one of my aspirations going into this live-action reimagining was to dial up the relationships, the key ones, so Stoick and Hiccup have much depth going on—that push and pull of love and expectation,' he said. '[It's] something that so many kids feel and parents feel when their kid is not turning out the way that they want them to. I wanted to lean into that a little bit more because that just feels very timeless, and kind of travels the globe in terms of cultural specificity.' Butler previously voiced the character in the animated franchise from DreamWorks. Together the collaborators quickly eased back into the world of Berk and finding who Stoick is this time around. 'With Gerard, the moment that he came aboard it was sort of [like] visiting with an old friend because Gerard had such a strong input into who Stoick was in that first movie,' DeBlois said. 'He was like co-creator of the character; finding all of the nuance and the range and the arc that he undergoes was a conversation with [him], rather than us just telling him what he was going to do.' Deepening the emotional relationship between Stoick and Hiccup was a key part of the new film's narrative. 'I think when he was able to step into those boots for real and have that 90 pound costume put on—the five pieces of his beard and wig, which he complained about all the time—he is that character,' DeBlois said. 'All of that weight and burden becomes part of his emotional burden as well, because he's trying to keep this tribe together, keep fighting for the purpose that they came to this island for—yet somehow [also] be a single parent and navigate his way through that with a kid that he doesn't understand,' he added. 'I love that he finds so much nuance and depth in all of those tasks as an actor.' Stoick's arc with Toothless, which comes into play in a big way in How to Train Your Dragon 2, also gets more set-up time, much to the anticipation of fans of the animated franchise. 'We know where it's headed in future installations, but in this movie I really like those moments where Stoick and Toothless have to face off a little bit and to go from enemies to sort of a mutual understanding that they will save one another,' DeBlois said. 'There's a strength there and just the very truthful apology that Stoick makes to Toothless near the end of the movie feels very authentic. Those are not crocodile tears, that's true emotion coming through, the remorse and the regret and the change that Stoick undergoes.' How to Train Your Dragon opens June 13.
Arab News
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Arab News
Red-carpet launch in Riyadh: Gerard Butler kicks off ‘How to Train Your Dragon' premiere
RIYADH: Gerard Butler kicked off his international press tour for 'How to Train Your Dragon' with a special red-carpet premiere at Vox Cinemas, Roshn Front in Riyadh. Reprising his role as Stoick the Vast, Butler's visit marked a major moment for Saudi Arabia's growing entertainment scene. Fans filled the venue, eager to catch a glimpse of the Hollywood star. Butler took his time meeting attendees, posing for photos, and signing autographs, a gesture that was met with huge enthusiasm, especially from young fans. In a press chat, Butler spoke about the significance of launching the film in Saudi Arabia, praising the Kingdom's rising profile in the global entertainment industry. 'It's an honor to be here,' he said. 'The energy of the crowd has been incredible, and I'm excited to share this story with everyone.' He also recorded an exclusive interview with Arab News, set to be published soon. 'How to Train Your Dragon,' directed by three-time Oscar nominee Dean DeBlois, is a live-action remake of the beloved DreamWorks franchise. The film, releasing on June 12, follows the bond between Hiccup and Toothless, with Butler's character playing a key role. The cast includes Julian Dennison, Gabriel Howell, and Bronwyn James. The evening not only celebrated the film but also reflected Saudi Arabia's efforts to position itself as a key player in the global film industry.
