How To Train Your Dragon: Why The New Fishlegs Actor Looks So Familiar

Director Dean DeBlois may have brought the animated "How to Train Your Dragon" trilogy to a close back in 2019, but he's since returned to the franchise with a live-action remake of the 2010 animated film he initially co-directed with Chris Sanders. This new interpretation of the beloved family movie doesn't stray too far from the original film and often ends up being a shot-for-shot remake (albeit one that's a half hour longer by virtue of some extended sequences involving the future dragon slayers of Berk). In his review, /Film's Ethan Anderton described the remake as a fun albeit largely unnecessary venture that pretty much plays the hits. It doesn't really matter though, as the movie is already set to receive a sequel in 2027.

While "The Black Phone" star Mason Thames may take front and center as Hiccup (the awkward Viking who learns to tame and befriend the Night Fury known as Toothless), the live-action "How to Train Your Dragon" also shines a light on the other young Vikings going through their own trials of dragon training in the story. Among their ranks is one Fishlegs Ingerman, a husky nerd with an affinity for dragon names and statistics; basically, if there's anyone on Berk who could clock a Deadly Nadder or a Hideous Zippleback by their strengths and class rankings, then he's the person you want to listen to. The other kids, however, tend to ignore him though.

Where Fishlegs is voiced by Christopher Mintz-Plasse in the animated "How to Train Your Dragon" trilogy, it's Julian Dennison who physically steps into the Viking's shoes in the live-action redo. If the New Zealand actor looks familiar, that's because he's been pretty busy in the decade since he made a great impression in one of Taika Waititi's best films, "Hunt for the Wilderpeople," back in 2016.

While Dennison made his debut in family films like "Shopping" and "Paper Planes," it wasn't until his turn in "Hunt for the Wilderpeople" that he was propped up on the world stage. He gives a fantastic performance in the movie as Ricky Baker ("Wild Pork and Watercress"), a rebellious youth who keeps hopping from one foster home to another. Based on the novel from New Zealand author Barry Crump, the film follows Ricky as he settles down with his Aunt Bella (Rima Te Wiata) and Uncle Hector (Sam Neill) on a farm in the remote wilderness. Bella is the closest he's come to finding a home worth investing in, a sentiment that is sadly dashed when she dies of a stroke.

Upon learning that he'll be given back to the state and shuffled off to another home, Ricky acts out and takes off into the woods. Hector follows him, but gets injured in the process, propelling the two on a hilarious yet touching adventure involving manhunts, meeting eccentric characters, and having fun on the other side of the law. Holding your own against a tremendous actor like Neill is no easy task, but Dennison more than manages the task as a kid who is seemingly allergic to not getting himself and everyone he meets into trouble. The film was a big hit in the indie circuits, especially in New Zealand, and made it clear Dennison is a considerable talent with plenty of charm and humor to spare. Needless to say, his star-making work in "Hunt for the Wilderpeople" quickly caught Hollywood's eye, ensuring the young actor would find his way into a number of different franchises in the years that followed.

Most casual moviegoers were most likely introduced to Dennison when he appeared under the Marvel banner in 20th Century Fox's "Deadpool 2," in which he played yet another troubled youth in the form of Russell Collins aka Firefist. The film's interpretation of this particular "X-Men" character envisions him as a student at the Essex House for Mutant Rehabilitation, where he and other young mutants are subject to inhumane treatment from the school's cruel staff. Russell, who has both a swift temper and the ability to conjure flames with his hands, soon provides a conundrum for Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) when a hardened being from the future known as Cable (Josh Brolin) pulls a "Terminator," traveling back in time to kill Russell before he can reach the full extent of his powers and wreak his vengeance on the world. Dennison himself provides the film's heart; you want Deadpool to reach the young mutant before he lets his demons get the best of him.

Only a few years later, Dennison would make the move to Netflix as the antagonist Belsnickel in "The Christmas Chronicles 2," acting opposite Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn as Mr. and Mrs. Claus. Here, he plays an adopted elf with a vengeance against jolly Old Saint Nick after being turned into a human for causing too much trouble. Indeed, there tends to be a pattern with Dennison playing misunderstood youths with a soft demeanor aching to be understood.

It may not be a meaty role, but Dennison also has the distinction of having been in not just a Kaiju movie but the MonsterVerse's "Avengers" thanks to his role in 2021's "Godzilla vs. Kong." Appearing alongside Millie Bobby Brown's character from "Godzilla: King of the Monsters" and Brian Tyree Henry as a conspiracy theorist podcaster, he's able to assist in the close-call defeat of MechaGodzilla in the film.

In the year since then, Dennison has been able to book another leading role in the New Zealand coming-of-age movie "Uproar," in addition to the horror-comedy "Y2K" from "Saturday Night Live" cast member turned writer/director Kyle Mooney. More than that, Dennison's last few projects have shown that he's able to go beyond the limits of his most heralded performance in "Hunt for the Wilderpeople." In an example of art imitating life, Fishlegs tends to be similarly ignored by the other Viking teenagers in "How to Train Your Dragon," yet he carries an optimism that complements his special interest in the winged creatures.

"How to Train Your Dragon" is now playing in theaters.