NBC Insider Exclusive

Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive show news, updates, and more!

Sign Up For Free to View
NBC Insider How to Train Your Dragon

NBC Taking Flight with How to Train Your Dragon Special Ahead of Live-Action Film (DETAILS)

The half-hour primetime special is set to air on NBC Friday, June 6.

By Josh Weiss

NBC will take to the skies on the evening of Friday, June 6 with a special look behind-the-scenes of DreamWorks' live-action How to Train Your Dragon movie before it opens in theaters nationwide the following Friday, June 13 (click here for tickets).

Scheduled to premiere on the network at 8:00 p.m. ET, the half-hour primetime event, Soaring to Life: The Making of How to Train Your Dragon, chronicles writer/director/producer Dean DeBlois and his journey to reimagine the acclaimed animated franchise in the world of live-action.

RELATED: See The Isle of Berk Come to Life in How to Train Your Dragon Making Of Book (EXCLUSIVE)

If you can't tune in for the initial broadcast, don't worry — the special will be available to stream on Peacock the following day.

Inside Soaring to Life: The Making of How to Train Your Dragon 

Toothless watches Hiccup (Mason Thames) in How to Train Your Dragon (2025).

"Soaring to Life: The Making of How to Train Your Dragon immerses audiences in the world of Berk like never before," reads the official synopsis. "From elaborate handcrafted sets to cutting-edge filmmaking technology, the special reveals a behind-the-scenes look at the passion, innovation and emotional storytelling that power this modern epic."

Principal cast members Mason Thames (Hiccup), Nico Parker (Astrid), and Gerard Butler (Stoick the Vast) will be on hand to show off the ornate sets, incredible technology, and passionate storytelling that helped bring the movie to life.

RELATED: Epic Universe’s Isle of Berk Has Dragons You Can Actually Interact With — Here’s How

Hiccup rides on Toothles in How to Train Your Dragon (2025).

DeBlois originally launched the franchise back in 2010 with co-director Chris Sanders (The Wild Robot) before flying solo — pun intended — on the two sequels. All three movies were nominated for Academy Awards. And speaking of sequels, Universal Pictures has already green-lit a live-action take on How to Train Your Dragon 2 (currently slated for June 11, 2027).

“I decided to revisit How to Train Your Dragon because it presented a remarkable opportunity — not only to direct a live-action film, but to return to a world I’ve genuinely missed,” DeBlois says in the production notes. “These characters and this universe have stayed with me, and now we can bring them back with such authenticity and conviction that, when audiences enter this world, they’ll never want to leave.” 

RELATED: Visit the Live-Action Isle of Berk in New How to Train Your Dragon Feature

When is the live-action How to Train Your Dragon release date?

How to Train Your Dragon soars onto the big screen Friday, June 13. Tickets are on sale here!

The animated HTTYD trilogy is now streaming on Peacock alongside its three television spinoffs. And as of today, fans can actually visit the Isle of Berk for themselves by way of Universal Orlando's Epic Universe.