Gabriel Howell has always been fascinated by the concept of filmmaking. Growing up during the age of early YouTube, where making vlogs and silly videos was the norm, he was inspired to do more, the platform merely giving him a taste of what was possible. 

Skip to being accepted into RADA (Royal Academy of Dramatic Art), and the journey to being in one of the most beloved fantasy stories ever put to screen begins. Howell speaks of How to Train Your Dragon as if he’s in awe. There’s a sparkle to his eyes, a wide smile as if he can’t quite believe his luck.  But it’s more than mere luck. From making films on his camcorder with his brother to being accepted to one of the most prestigious acting schools in the country, and gaining acclaim for his roles in Bodies and Nightsleeper, there’s a pattern of hard work, and that hard work is paying off. The sky is literally the limit.

There’s palpable excitement when he speaks with us about Snoutlout (the bullying foil to protagonist Hiccup), and the isle of Berk, it’s almost as if he’s brimming with energy, fit to burst. Howell assures us that the film is in good hands. Made by fans who know just how much this story means to audiences, and doubles down that they won’t be disappointed. While the animation is so beloved and beautiful, the live-action breathes new life into the story, making it so real and tangible, you could almost reach through the screen and be transported. It’s pure magic.

In conversation with 1883’s Dana Reboe, Gabriel Howell discusses How to Train Your Dragon, the character of Snotlout, how he fell into the acting world, Marvel or DC, what superhero he’d like to play given the chance, and more.

Hi, Gabriel! Thank you so much for your time today. Can you take me back to those formative years of becoming an actor and what you discovered about yourself as a creative and a person while you were at RADA? 

When I was young, I made loads of short movies I forced my little brother to be in. It was a bit of a dictatorship in my house. [laughs] I was like, “We’re going to do it, and you don’t have a choice.” I think he’s happy that we did it now but you’d have to ask him. I was making my own stuff a lot. I’d rip off the last movie I’d seen or the last thing that had inspired me. I was big into YouTube; there was a period pre-vlogging when people would make little shorts, which I was just on the cusp of. I bought a little camcorder and I tried to do as much as I could, I would drag people into it, from my brother to my mates, really. I was just really lucky that I had a great teacher who told me about drama school and that being a route. It’s a world that you don’t know anything about until you’re in it. He’d gone to drama school, and he was like, “Okay. So here’s what you do and here’s where you might want to audition.” I remember thinking, “Well, everyone I love has gone to RADA.” And a lot of people were like, “No one gets in to RADA” And I was like, “Well, statistically, 30 people do. So it’s doable.” 

That’s a great attitude to have! So, why not you? 

Exactly! That was my logic. I had a healthy bit of delusion. [laughter] I was really lucky that it coincided with me at a time in my life when I was ready for it. Drama school training is such an intensive cooking pot, you’re with the same people every day, you’re doing extensive work on yourself and on acting and on your craft, and you have to learn so much.

Is there a specific memory during your time at school that reaffirmed your love of acting?

We did Chekhov in the first year. I was playing a servant who had one line, and he had to do an object exercise. So, you had to set up an activity for your character. I set up this dinner party, and I went to the shop and bought lemonade and tea, and stuff. I told everyone in the room to trash it, and then I would clean it up. I remember distinctly opening the door because I left the room, and when I came back, one of my beautiful classmates threw a tomato at my head. This is the good work, I was like, “Ah, yes.” [laughs] 

Did the tomato hit you square in the face?

It did. I was outside taking myself so seriously, then when I opened the door, and the tomato hit me. I just cried. I think that’s my memory, the moment when I was like “Yes, I am meant to be here.”

How would you say each project you’ve been a part of has impacted you? What would 2025 Gabriel say to 2019 or 2020 Gabriel? 

I’ve been so lucky to work from the get-go with quite brilliant and generous seasoned actors. (How To Train Your) Dragon is a bit of an anomaly. I’ve often been the youngest in a cast or the youngest of the youngest. That’s been a real godsend looking back on it. That’s where I’m sitting now. That is what I feel grateful for because I was thrown into rooms in which I immediately wanted to keep up with people. Luckily, these people let me do that and were generous enough to include me. They encouraged me, but also expected a lot of me. I’m really grateful for that.

I don’t know what I’d say to myself. In 2019, COVID was about to rupture everything. So, I would say, “The next year is going to be awful.” But I think COVID distilled why I wanted to do it (acting) because it took away the distraction. I think it’s the same for a lot of our jobs. It made us all ask: “Am I doing what I still want to do?”. I’d say, “Listen to the lessons that come from a shit year.”

Of the characters you’ve played on screen and stage, who would you say is the most similar to you, versus the most different, and why? 

That’s such a great question! I think Snotlout is quite far from me. They’re all bits of me, though. They’re all in me somewhere, and it’s like turning up the dials of the different bits. Snotlout is definitely the furthest, but when I’m nervous, I’m also overcompensating and loud, so I guess that’s there too [laughter]. I’ve tried to at least feel a real affinity to everyone who has come my way. I played a very grumpy teenager when I first came out of school, and that felt like I was regressing about 10 years. I’ve done quite a lot of work not to be someone who stays in their pyjamas all day

That’s a big mood [laughs]. Moving to Bodies for just a moment. What was working on that set like? What were your thoughts on Elias and joining the DC Universe?

I remember reading the first script, and there’s a death that happens right at the end of the first episode. It was probably the first time in my career that I’d read something and gasped. I remember Elias already had a lot to do in the early draft as well. He had quite a lot of time by himself, and he was really intriguing to me. He was a real open wound that I found I immediately wanted to protect and take ownership of. It’s something that doesn’t always happen. There are times when you see a character and you’re like, “That’s mine. That’s my one.” I’m glad that it correlated because with Elias being the younger self of someone who grows to be so damaged and monstrous, it was so intriguing to me. 

I mean, even your question a few moments ago about what you would say to your past self? You want to be the adult in your life that your child self would feel safe with. I think it brought up a lot of that in me at a time in my life when I was wanting to become that — the person that my child self would look for in a room. I was so open for that specific character and for that project at the time.

Since we’re wading a bit into the DC universe, on Instagram, I saw a post where you were dressed as Spider-Man [Gabriel laughs]. Do you consider yourself a Marvel or DC fan? And if you could play any superhero, who would it be and why?

I’m going to say DC.

That was quick! 

Okay, because Elias’s loyalties are my loyalties [laughs]. I would like to play Robin. If we’re going in the vein they (DC) seem to be going, which is darker, I’m going to say the one that’s a bit of a bastard. There’s one where he’s not all good.

Red Hood, Jason Todd!

Yes! I need you to talk to my agent. 

I’ll get right on that. Sticking with Instagram, your bio stuck out to me. Can you talk a little about the quote, “Now you see the advantage of a little man in a big coat?” 

Oh my God, yeah! That’s a line from the Marlon Brando movie On the Waterfront. I can’t remember the character’s name now, which is bad of me, but he is the little guy who works with Brando’s character at the docks, and he sneaks him some booze at one point. He’s got this big bottle of whiskey underneath his coat, and he takes it out and he says, “Now you see the advantage of a little man in a big coat.”

Oh, I love that so much. That film has been on my list for ages. Do you have a set of movies that you find yourself going back to? Comfort movies?

Shaun of the Dead. The reason I think I ever made anything. Last year was the anniversary, and I went with a mate to see a screening, and it’s still absolutely perfect. I love Moonlight so much. Weirdly, I’ve been thinking about this one a lot at the moment – A Knight’s Tale. That’s a good one, and Paul Bettany specifically in that movie – he’s wild in it, he’s so astute and so clever and so funny. And the last one I’ll say is Meet the Robinsons, that film had a huge effect on me. So, I’ll say those.

All of those are solid choices! I think the only one on there I haven’t seen is Meet the Robinsons, so I’ll make note. I also noticed that you dabble in film photography. Where did that passion come from and will we see any set photos from How to Train Your Dragon?

Yes. I’ve got some cool photos. I’m proud of them. I’ve been waiting to release them. It’s such a cinematic place, Belfast. I got into film photography, which is generous because all I do is point and shoot – I don’t know anything – but I think it’s a fallout of when I was a kid and making movies. I have no idea what I’m doing [laughs].

I think with the film, you have to buy it and it’s quite expensive, and then to decide to use a picture of this film on that thing, it’s a conscious act which I like. It feels more like the memory as opposed to the iPhone camera; it feels more authentic. There’s more love worked in. And what’s great is you’ll get it back, and it won’t be what you thought it was or one that you didn’t think was anything – maybe it was a bit of an accident – it turned out really nicely.

You know, you’ve made your own films when you were younger, you like being behind the camera, do you have a desire to work behind the camera at some point during your career? Would you want to direct or write?

I really love writing. My favourite people are writers. That’s my verdict of the human race is my favourite people are writers. I think they’re wicked, and I’ve got some really amazing creatives in my life in my friend group, and we’ll hopefully work together. At the moment, we’ve just got our heads down and we’re working as hard as we can in our own fields, but coming together would be really cool.

Amazing! So we’ll be looking out in the future for some scripts and projects. So, moving to How to Train Your Dragon? What has been your favourite thing about the whole experience?

I mean, I was in the world, and they built it, and I was wearing it, and that was quite a bit of a trip. These are characters that I ran around with in my mind on holidays and now they’re here, flesh and blood and I can look at Berk and touch it, like it’s a crazy thing to get my head around. It’s a childhood dream.

What do you think keeps bringing people back? From wanting the theme park to now the live-action movie, what is it about the world that resonates with its fans? 

Casting me. I think they want more of me [laughs]. No, I think everyone feels like they’re Hiccup. I think no matter who you were growing up, everyone’s Hiccup in a way. At least for a little bit of time in your childhood, you’re not quite the person that people are expecting you to be, whether that’s with sexuality or whether that’s with physique or masculinity. We’ve all been there for at least a little bit. And I think it’s maxed out with the imagination and the wonder and the most adorable cartoon character, I think that’s maybe ever been put to film. Then there’s the music, and I think it was this perfect storm of everything falling into place.

I have to ask, what about Snotlout connected with you? How did it feel to step into his shoes and get to play in this world?

He wants to be like all the rappers that I liked when I was like 15 [laughs], he’s got this self-assurance I don’t have, sort of standing so front-footed and so confident. He’s demanding confidence of himself. It was a really fun thing to play with. I think because of the lineup in the friends, everyone fulfilled a different role, the music of all of them together works so well, and to play the note of a brash bully, it was so lovely when it complemented the others. I really enjoyed that.

What do fans have to look forward to in the live-action iteration without spoiling anything? 

I think what they’ve got to look forward to is a lot more of the world. I watched it immediately double down a layer in terms of feeling like a world that exists completely. The animation is so beautiful, but there’s something about it being real. Mason (Thames) is a real kid, and he’s in real danger, and that’s real fire. I can imagine this place existing with them, and I think that really deepens the story and deepens the threat as well. There’s a bit more threat and a bit more danger, but it’s there for the excitement and the vastness of the story. 

I genuinely can’t wait. What are you most looking forward to about watching it in the theatre with everybody else? 

Test drive. Get me in for a test drive, honestly. You can cut all of my scenes [laughter] and I’m watching it in IMAX. I will be there. The Isle of Berk on one of the largest screens? Come on.

And lastly, what advice would you give Snotlout, given the chance? If you could sit him down one-on-one to have a conversation? 

He’s going to get there, he’s going to get there. He wouldn’t listen to me; he just needs to keep on and keep trying his best, and keep figuring life out. That the people who love him the most, the people he’s sort of trying to impress the most, don’t need bells and whistles. But he wouldn’t hear it from you or me, he has to discover his worth on his own… then claim that he knew it all along.

How To Train Your Dragon is in theatres now.

Interview Dana Reboe
Photography Garry Jones
Styling Swity Shinde
Hair Chantelle Phillips