It seems as though these days, nearly every movie or TV show is a remake, a sequel, or a spinoff. I’d argue that most people have watched at least one of them, likely for love of the original. Sitting on my couch earlier this week, trying to get work done to stave off some for finals, I took a break and scrolled through my social media. In my scroll, I paused on a trailer released for the live-action remake of the film How to Train Your Dragon. It was the one post to actively make me roll my eyes and return to my homework. Let me be clear, I love the original How to Train Your Dragon, and the other two films in the trilogy. Both the story and the soundtrack are phenomenal, and it’s one of the movies responsible for why I love cinema so much. I’m just increasingly tired of the nostalgia trap of live-action remakes.Â
As of 2024, Disney has made 21 live-action remakes of their classic animated films. Now, it appears Dreamworks wants a cut of this lucrative niche in the industry. It’s not surprising that these two big companies lean towards remakes, they repackage familiar stories and give them to nostalgic audiences that will assuredly devour them. They know it’ll make money, which minimizes the risk that comes with a new story and new characters. They can update the visuals, modernize the story a little, and repackage it with the shining paper of nostalgia for the older fans. It’s a simple exchange of familiar characters for booming box office revenue.Â
Now, there’s nothing inherently wrong with making these. People love the comfort of films that connect them to their childhood. Still, most of the Disney live-action remakes haven’t been well received, with a few exceptions. I’ve seen some people argue it’s a way for older generations to reintroduce the stories to the younger ones. Why they can’t just show them the old ones is a mystery to me.Â
Personally, I think it’s another piece in a larger issue with how animated films are received. There seems to be this notion that animated films are for children, and they’re taken less seriously. Since the beginning of the Oscars, only three animated films have been nominated in the best picture category: Beauty and the Beast (1991), Up (2009), and Toy Story 3 (2010). I have numerous issues with this, namely the fact that I’m still scarred by the demonic pink bear in Toy Story 3, Lotso. Mainly, I think it’s a major piece of evidence for the general reception of animation. The major irony with the misconception that animated media is childish is that there are countless animated media geared towards a wide range of audiences. Even certain animated series whose intended audiences are for children resonate with adults.Â
From my point of view, live-action remakes look like a desperate, lazy attempt to capitalize on viewers’ nostalgia, in a world where non-animated features are going to be taken more seriously than their animated originals. In my opinion, animation is the best vessel to tell some of the more vibrant fantasy-based stories. Why make a live-action Moana when the original is one of the most beautiful animated films I think I’ve ever seen?
In terms of How to Train Your Dragon, making a live-action version makes less sense to me than most of the other films. Sure, the first one was released back when industries were still refining their technique with 3D animation, and it might not look the most polished, I understand that. Still, they used the same technology in both of them to animate Toothless, the main dragon. With all the CGI they needed to make the live-action version, it won’t look all that different. In my research to write this article, I watched a side-by-side of the critical sequence in the film where Hiccup, the main protagonist, shows Toothless he can trust him. Besides one being animated, the shots are basically identical. This leads me to repeat: What’s the point?
Unfortunately, it all boils down to the money, the safe strategy for reliable revenue. Despite the opinions of me and any others aspiring to creative fields or already in them, big film studios will continue to make live actions. Why would they stop when they make so much money without having to make a whole new story? The reality of it is, that big corporations will continue to live out the cliche of caring more about money than new, innovative stories. They have no reason to stop when the people clamoring at the box offices don’t seem to care anyway.Â