A crew member working on the live-action How to Train Your Dragon 2 has reportedly suffered a major injury.
Warning: this article contains details of a serious injury.
According to Variety, the incident earlier this month occured at Sky Studios Elstree, where the movie is being filmed — though away from the film’s actual set.
It was here that an unnamed special effects technician reportedly “severed multiple fingers on one hand during an incident involving a saw in a workshop.” Unfortunately, despite “extensive” surgery, the severed fingers could not be saved.
Exactly what caused the incident has not been reported, but Variety goes on to mention the recent concerns by the UK crew member’s union Bectu about staff working long hours without contractually required rest periods.
Production company Universal is yet to comment on the matter, and there’s no suggestion that work on the overall film will be interrupted by the incident.
2025’s initial How to Train Your Dragon remake ended up earning $636 million at the global box office from a modest $150 million budget, ensuring that a sequel was inevitable.
Set to launch on June 11, 2027, the live-action How to Train Your Dragon 2 film will adapt the events of the series’ second animated film that was originally released back in 2014. Franchise director and writer Dean DeBlois is once again at the helm, with the cast of the first live-action remake set to return. This includes The Black Phone’s Mason Thames as Hiccup, The Last of Us’ Nico Parker as Astrid, 300’s Gerard Butler as Stoick and Hot Fuzz’s Nick Frost as Gobber.
Joining the cast in live action this time around is Lord of the Rings’ Cate Blanchett, who reprises her animated role as Valka, Hiccup’s long-lost mother.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
