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‘How to Train Your Dragon 2’ faces major setback after crew member loses fingers during studio accident

'How to Train Your Dragon 2' crew member damages multiple fingers during an off-set incident.

Bad news is coming for fans of 'How to Train Your Dragon 2'. According to new reports, the movie has faced issues during production. Variety shares that a special effects technician injured multiple fingers on his hand while working with a saw in a workshop at Sky Studios Elstree. The sources claim that despite intensive surgery, the fingers remained severed. The accident took place earlier in April in the UK. The situation unfolded amid offset work in the studio.

The exact circumstances remain unclear, but last year, the UK’s crew member union Bectu, along with producers’ union Pact, shared a statement highlighting health and safety risks plaguing productions in the country. The statement suggested that these risks were connected to professionals being asked to bypass the contractually negotiated rest periods, aka “broken turnaround,” and continue working to fulfill production’s objectives. “Breaking turnaround impacts workers’ ability to do their job safely and effectively,” said Bectu National Secretary Spencer Macdonald. “Reports to Bectu indicate that exhaustion, accidents, and near-misses are all too common, as well as poor mental health for many film and TV workers.” It is possible that the aforementioned accident could be a consequence of the environment the organizations warned about in 2025.

Universal, which is backing the project, has not provided any updates regarding the situation. The incident is definitely unfortunate for a team enjoying the recent success of its predecessor. The movie is a sequel to 'How to Train Your Dragon,' released on June 13, 2025, and received huge acclaim from critics and audiences. The original raked in $636.4 million worldwide, becoming the franchise's biggest success, which includes the beloved original trilogy, as per Deadline. Universal was confident about the movie's success even before its release and announced a sequel even before its 2025 release.

Dean DeBlois, who directed both the animated trilogy and the 2025 movie, shared that he was a bit nervous about the announcement, according to Entertainment Weekly. He wanted to wait for the 2025 installment's performance before putting out the sequel’s statements. "I think once [Universal Pictures] saw a pretty finished version of the movie that we tested with an audience, they felt really confident. And so they wanted to let it be known, especially at CinemaCon, because there's so many factors that go into planning for a movie, even two years out, getting screens and premium large format screens, and just getting movie theater exhibitors excited," he shared. Ultimately, Universal's confidence proved to be right, and the movie turned out to be a blockbuster.

The sequel is set to be released on June 11, 2027. It is unclear whether the accident will hamper this plan. The sequel will be based on the 2014 animated movie, which followed the showdown between Hiccup and Drago Bludvist. DeBlois will return to direct the sequel, which will star Phil Dunster, Mason Thames, Nico Parker, Gerard Butler, Cate Blanchett, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, Julian Dennison, Gabriel Howell, Bronwyn James, and Harry Trevaldwyn.