DreamWorks Animation is excited to share the season one trailer for Dragons: The Nine Realms. Inspired by the How to Train Your Dragon franchise, the series premieres on Hulu and Peacock December 23.
Joining Jeremy Shada (Voltron: Legendary Defender) is newly announced Julia Stiles (10 Things I Hate About You), Marcus Scribner (Black-ish), Aimee Garcia (Lucifer), Ashley Liao (Fuller House), Lauren Tom (The Joy Luck Club), Keston John (She-Ra and the Princesses of Power), Justina Machado (One Day at a Time) and D’arcy Carden (The Good Place).
About Dragons: The Nine Realms
Set 1,300 years after the events of How To Train Your Dragon, dragons are now just a legend to the modern world. When a geological anomaly opens up an immense, miles-deep fissure in the Earth’s surface, scientists from all over the world gather at a new research facility to study the mysterious phenomenon. Soon a group of misfit kids, brought to the site by their parents, uncover the truth about dragons and where they’ve been hiding — a secret they must keep to themselves to protect what they’ve discovered.
Series Details
Release Date: December 23rd on Hulu & Peacock
Episodes: 6
Voice Actors: Jeremy Shada as Tom Kullersen; Ashley Liao as Jun Wong; Marcus Scribner as D’Angelo Baker; Aimee Garcia as Alexandra Gonzalez; Julia Stiles as Olivia Kullersen; Lauren Tom as May Wong; Keston John as Philip Baker; Justina Machado as Carla Gonzalez; D’arcy Carden as Linda
Executive Producer and Showrunner: John Tellegen
Executive Producers: Chuck Austen and Henry Gilroy
Supervising Producer: Beth Sleven
Interview with Marcus Scribner “D’Angelo Baker” and John Tellegan, Executive Producer and Showrunner
I was given the opportunity to sit down and chat with both Marcus Scribner who plays D’Angelo Baker and John Tellegan who is the Executive Producer and Showrunner for Dragons: The Nine Realms.
What do you hope viewers get out of watching Dragons: The Nine Realms?
Marcus – “I guess John could speak better to this being the creator and genius behind it, but for me I feel like a sense of connectedness and also I feel like we illustrate family and friendship really well in Dragons and what those bonds mean to us. We really create a human connection between our characters. I hope they get that but I also hope they get a sense of exploration and adventure. Its called The Nine Realms for a reason, we’re going to be exploring and taking everything on out there. I hope that viewers get a lot of excitement and adventure from that aspect and also a feel for our characters.”
John – “I would just add to that … all of our kids are coming together from different areas and they’re traveling a lot with their folks. They haven’t really had a home yet to call home. When they come together, it gives them a common purpose to find their destiny together as a group. I think thats a good message and theme for everyone watching. Like Marcus was saying, a sense of belonging and support from friends and family to strive for a better world.”
How do you feel you relate to D’Angelo, Marcus and Do you have a favorite character, John?
Marcus – “I feel like I relate to D’Angelo in a lot of aspects. He is very by the books and really knows exactly what is right and wrong and has a good moral compass. I have a decent moral compass but am not by the books like D’Angelo though! I definitely like to wing it a lot. I think I also relate in his love for his family and friends and trying to uplift them and always there to support them. I feel like I try to do all of those things as much as I can.”
John – “I don’t have a favorite character, except I do love D’Angelo of course, but I can’t pick a favorite. I love them all and we have a very strong cast across the board. This is a show that hangs on emotion. The whole franchise is about loving on dragons, supporting dragons and the whole coming of age thing and family and friends. D’Angelo is the heart and soul and conscience of the team. The team would not work without the heartbeat that D’Angelo brings to it.”
What’s the most challenging part of being a Voice Actor, Marcus?
Marcus – “Its hard to pick a challenging part because I just have so much fun whenever I get to do a voice over. The most challenging part, I feel like, even more so than with live action is that you’re trying to portray action and emotions with just your voice. You’re creating the scene through one form of expression instead of being able to use my eyes and face. In voice acting I’m only able to use my voice which is freeing but also at the same time it puts some constraints on it. But that’s the fun of it too. How do I illustrate this with just my voice?”
John – “If I could piggy back on that for one second, there are a lot of really great film actors who are not really good at voice over work. Its surprising, I’ll never name any names, its surprising when it happens because it is challenging. Film actors are used to the cameras being really close to their face and they’re able to subtly emote or tell a story with a sudden glance. You can’t do any of that in voice over. So, to be able to do both like Marcus can do is a skill that not all possess.”
Marcus – “I’d like to equate that too the fact that I’ve watched a lot more anime than I have live action shows!”
Do you prefer voice acting or live action, Marcus?
Marcus – “I don’t have a preference for either, but there’s something about voice over work that is just so exciting. Getting to let your true self out, go buck-wild and scream and not have to worry if I’m making the right face or looking good for the camera. That’s my favorite part of voice over work. I can’t pick a favorite between the two though because me personally I love animation and I’ve watched anime and cartoons even more than live action. So getting to be a part of them is so fun!”
John – “And you might end up being an action figure some day!”
Marcus – “Oh that would be dope. You better tell them to make me small John!”
John – “Absolutely!”
About Marcus Scribner
Marcus Scribner landed his first series regular role at the age of 13 on ABC’s hit comedy “Black-ish” starring as ‘Andre Jr.’ opposite Anthony Anderson and Tracee Ellis Ross. Since its premiere in September 2014, the series has gone on to receive both critical acclaim and awards recognition year after year, including a prestigious Peabody Award in 2015. Marcus has also been nominated for multiple Emmy, Golden Globe, Critics Choice, NAACP Image and Screen Actors Guild Awards as part of the ensemble cast. In March 2019, Marcus received his first individual NAACP Image Award for ‘Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.’ “Black-ish” will return for its eighth and final season in January 2022.
Marcus recently wrapped production on Netflix’s upcoming young adult film “Along for the Ride.” Based on the novel of the same name from New York Times bestselling author Sarah Dessen, the film centers on an 18-year-old insomniac who meets a mysterious boy with a tragic past during the summer before college. Marcus stars as ‘Wallace’ alongside Emma Pasarow, Belmont Cameli, Laura Kariuki, Kate Bosworth, Dermot Mulroney, and Andie MacDowell.
Most recently, Marcus can be heard as ‘Alex’ in Twentieth Century Studios’ animated feature “Ron’s Gone Wrong.” The stellar voice cast includes Zach Galifianakis, Jack Dylan Grazer, Ed Helms, Justice Smith, Rob Delaney, and Academy Award winner Olivia Colman. The science fiction comedy film made its debut in theaters in October 2021 to favorable reviews from critics and audiences worldwide.
Marcus’ other film credits include “Farewell Amor,” which showcased at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. The film follows an Angolan immigrant who is joined in the U.S. by his wife and daughter. Now strangers sharing a one-bedroom apartment, they discover a shared love of dance that may help them overcome the distance between them. Marcus plays ‘DJ,’ the shy love interest of the daughter, ‘Sylvia.’ He was also seen in 2017’s “Alexander in Real Life,” Awesomeness Film’s 2020 high school comedy “The F* It List,” and the college set thriller “Confessional.”
In 2015, Marcus took on his first animated film role, voicing the rambunctious dinosaur ‘Buck’ in Pixar’s “The Good Dinosaur.” He then went on to become a part of the DreamWorks family in the Netflix animated series “Home: Adventures with Tip & Oh.” He recently concluded a five-season run voicing the character ‘Bow’ in Netflix’s critically acclaimed and fan-favorite “She-Ra and the Princesses of Power” revival.
A passionate humanitarian, Marcus can be found traveling the globe to give back to the people around him and the world. He serves as an ambassador for Defend Our Future, a project of the Environmental Defense Fund that is dedicated to empowering young people of all political persuasions who are interested in advancing climate change and clean energy solutions. He also serves as the Chief Youth Innovator for Reserve Protection Agency in South Africa, helping to protect Africa’s beautiful animals. In November 2019, he was also honored by the National Foster Youth Institute for his work raising awareness about underserved foster youth.
Marcus was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA.
About John Tellegan
John Tellegen is the executive producer and showrunner of the highly-anticipated DreamWorks Animation series Dragons: The Nine Realms premiering on Hulu and Peacock December 23. The series is inspired by the billion-dollar How to Train Your Dragon franchise and marks the first installment to be set in modern times.
No stranger to the world of Dragons, Tellegen previously wrote for the Emmy-winning DreamWorks series Dragons: Race to the Edge for Netflix, as well as the preschool series Dragons: Rescue Riders for Netflix and Peacock.
Additionally for DreamWorks, Tellegen also served as co-executive producer of the Peacock series Where’s Waldo?
Previous credits include Netflix’s Spy Kids: Mission Critical as well as various acclaimed TV series, including Power Rangers Operation Overdrive and Power Rangers R.P.M. among others.
Tellegen received a BA in Film & TV from Loyola Marymount University. He currently resides in Los Angeles.