Jacob Tremblay discusses his role as Elmer in My Father’s Dragon during this exclusive interview. He also recalls recording with Gaten Matarazzo.
Jacob Tremblay Talks My Father’s Dragon & Gaten Matarazzo
My Father’s Dragon is an incredibly wholesome film that is sure to be a hit with families. Jacob Tremblay voices a young boy named Elmer, and Gaten Matarazzo (who you might know as Dustin from Stranger Things) voices a dragon named Boris. The two form an unlikely bond and friendship. When asked what drew him to be a part of this movie, Jacob Tremblay immediately answered that it was the dynamic between Elmer and Boris.
“Reading that on the script was so much fun, and recording as well because I got to record it with Gaten. It was so special because obviously, you follow the lines, but what was so cool about this is that sometimes we could go off the page a little bit and improv, and it was really fun. It was me and him in the room, and Nora, who’s obviously a fantastic director, was there as well. It felt like a party.”
Boris and Elmer are different, but they each have great qualities. When asked which of them he is personally more like, Jacob Tremblay says that he is a good mixture of them both. “I can have fun like Boris. But then Elmer, he’s got that ambitiousness. But Boris at the same time, he has that ambitiousness too. There are moments where Boris is really frightened and Elmer is probably, almost definitely, just as scared as Boris at times, but Elmer can hide it a bit more than Boris. So I would say some some days Boris, some days Elmer.”
My Father’s Dragon is based off of a book by the same name, but Jacob admits to not having read it before he got the role. He even tells a funny story that he has a pair of My Father’s Dragon socks with Boris on them, but he did not know they were from the book. He actually got them because he liked the dragon on them.
“It was really funny because I had no idea and I was recording that day too. And they were like, those are My Father’s Dragon socks. Nice. Where’d you get those? Like, what these are My Father’s Dragon socks? I had no idea it was. It was a really weird, really odd coincidence.”
My Father’s Dragon is a wonderful family film. Jacob Tremblay says that he hopes those who watch it come away with a message about friendship, and how important it is to help your friends and to be there for them. “Elmer is so ambitious and sometimes he focuses on himself a bit too much. At the end of the day, Boris has ambitions of his own. So, it’s important for Elmer to help Boris out, as well.”
My Father’s Dragon comes to Netflix on November 11th.
Full Interview With Jacob Tremblay
Be sure to watch our full interview with Jacob Tremblay to learn even more about his time working on My Father’s Dragon.
NEXT: My Father’s Dragon Review
About My Father’s Dragon
From five-time Academy Award®-nominated animation studio Cartoon Saloon (The Secret of Kells, Song of the Sea, Wolfwalkers) and Academy Award®-nominated director Nora Twomey (The Breadwinner), comes an exquisite film inspired by the Newbery-honored children’s book from author Ruth Stiles Gannett.
Struggling to cope after a move to the city with his mother, Elmer runs away in search of Wild Island and a young dragon who waits to be rescued. Elmer’s adventures introduce him to ferocious beasts, a mysterious island and the friendship of a lifetime.
My Father’s Dragon comes to Netflix on November 11th.
Tessa Smith is a Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer-approved Film and TV Critic. On Camera personality and TV / Film Critic with 10+ years of experience in video editing, writing, editing, moderating, and hosting.