“How to Train Your Dragon,” Universal Studios’ live-action adaptation of the beloved 2010 animation of the same name, has taken flight with an impressive $198 million global debut, far exceeding expectations and becoming one of the year’s top box office launches.
Initial forecasts predicted a $65–$75 million domestic haul, but the film outperformed projections with a commanding $83.7 million opening weekend in North America, according to Box Office Mojo. Overseas, it generated $114.1 million across 67 international markets, bringing its global total to a soaring $197.8 million.
This debut marks Universal’s fifth-biggest domestic opening in the post-COVID era, narrowly edging out “Oppenheimer” ($82.5 million). It also more than doubles the original 2010 animated film’s $43.7 million opening. The franchise has clearly grown in popularity, with the sequels — “How to Train Your Dragon 2” and “The Hidden World” — having debuted with $49.5 million and $55 million, respectively.
Internationally, the film’s strongest performances came from Mexico ($14 million), the United Kingdom ($11 million), and China ($11 million).
Globally, only three titles released this year have had a bigger debut than “How to Train Your Dragon”: “Ne Zha 2” ($430 million), “Lilo & Stitch” ($342 million), and “A Minecraft Movie” ($313 million). Within Universal’s own lineup, it now stands as the studio’s third-highest-grossing global opening since the pandemic, behind “Fast X” ($319 million) and “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” ($204 million).
Directed by Dean DeBlois — the visionary behind the original animated trilogy — the live-action film famously sports a script similar to the original. Respectable reviews and strong word-of-mouth, combined with nostalgia, mean that even its $150 million production budget will do little to hinder a profitable venture.