The live-action version of How to Train Your Dragon stars Mason Thames and Nico Parker. What else have they starred in?
Rated PG, How to Train Your Dragon tells the story of Hiccup (Thames), a teen Viking on the isle of Berk who has aspirations of being a dragon slayer, but lacks the wherewithal to do it. However, Hiccup — the outcast son of Chief Stoic the Vast (Gerard Butler) — changes his mind about his life’s goal when he accidentally ensnares a Night Fury dragon he names Toothless and begins to bond with the creature.
After creating an artificial tail flap to help Toothless fly again, Hiccup develops an understanding of Toothless and his fellow dragons. As such, Hiccup discovers that the winged, fire-breathing creatures don’t want to harm the Vikings and that they could live in harmony with humans if Stoic and his fellow Vikings just give the dragons a chance.
Parker also stars in How to Train Your Dragon as Astrid, a teen Viking who at first is a rival of Hiccup’s during dragon slaying training but eventually becomes an ally of Hiccup and Toothless.
Born July 10, 2007, in Dallas, Thames made his screen debut in a three-episode guest role in the AppleTV+ drama For All Mankind in 2019. Also among Thames’ credits is a guest turn in three episodes as the young version of Walker (Jared Padalecki) in 2021 and 2022 in the CW police drama Walker.
Born on Dec. 9, 2004, in London, Nico Parker is the daughter of Westworld star Thandiwe Newton and director Ol Parker (Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again and Ticket to Paradise).
Nico Parker’s acting credits include the 2021 sci-fi film Reminiscence, starring Hugh Jackman and Newton, and more recently, the Renée Zellweger romantic comedy Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy.
Here are some of Thames and Parker’s other high-profile projects, which explains why the Hiccup and Astrid actors look so familiar.
‘Dumbo’ (2019)
Nico Parker stars as Milly Farrier in director Tim Burton’s Dumbo, a live-action remake of the 1941 animated Disney classic. Milly and Joe (Finley Hobbins) are the children of Holt Farrier, a World War I veteran who returns home to work for the the Medici Brothers’ Circus after losing his arm in battle.
The family cares for the elephant named Dumbo, whom they discover — thanks to his oversized ears — can fly. Dumbo — which also stars Danny DeVito, Eva Green and Michael Keaton — marked the screen debut of Parker.
‘The Black Phone’ (2021)
Mason Thames’ big-screen breakthrough came in a starring role in the hit supernatural horror thriller The Black Phone, directed by Scott Derrickson.
In the film, Thames stars as Finney, a teen kidnapped by a serial killer known as the Grabber (Ethan Hawke), who is trapped in a soundproof basement. When Finney discovers a black, rotary dial phone in the basement, he picks up calls only to hear through static connections the voices of the Grabber’s victims.
Thames will reprise his role as Finney in The Black Phone 2, which is set for an Oct. 17 release. Derrickson is returning to direct the sequel, which also stars Hawke and Madeleine McGraw, who reprises her role as Finney’s sister, Gwen, from the 2021 movie.
‘The Last of Us’ (2023)
Nico Parker starred in a guest turn in Season 1 of The Last of Us, the hit HBO and Max series based on the blockbuster video game of the same name.
Parker appears in the pivotal role of Sarah — the daughter of Pedro Pascal’s Joel Miller — but dies during the chaos at the beginning of the Cordyceps outbreak in the pilot episode.
‘Monster Summer’ (2024)
Mason Thames stars in a leading role opposite Mel Gibson in the adventure thriller Monster Summer, which had a brief theatrical run in October of 2024 before its pivot to streaming.
Thames plays Noah Reed, who along with his teen friends enlists the help of retired police Det. Gene Carruthers (Gibson) to look into mysterious occurrences on their island.
How to Train Your Dragon, starring Thames, Nico Parker, Nick Frost and Gerard Butler, is new in theaters.