The Dragons: The Nine Realms premiering on Peacock and Hulu December 23. Set 1300 years after the Dreamworks movie trilogy, dragons have become a legend only told ed down through stories. That is, until a mysterious geological anomaly brings a group of scientists together to study what's causing fissures to appear in the Earth's surface.
That's when a group of children - played by Jeremy Shada (Fuller House) - discover the magical dragons living there. Suddenly, all the legends are real again and it is their duty to keep them secret in order to protect their new friends.
Garcia, who has done a wide variety of voiceover work and recently completed a successful run on the beloved series Lucifer, spoke to Screen Rant about what makes the character of socially awkward nerd Alex so special to her and why she thinks dragons could be here in our world too.
What made you want to be part of the How To Train Your Dragon franchise?
Aimee Garcia: Well, I love the franchise. I love the movies, and I love dragons. I believe they might really exist.
And I loved Alex, because I'd never seen an animated character like her when I was a kid. There was no nerdy super science whiz tech genius Latina animated character when I grew up, and I don't know how many there are now. It was just really fun to see a coke bottle glasses, smartest-person-in-the-room, socially awkward, super nerd who never knew when to stop talking because she was so socially awkward. As soon as I saw that, I thought, "This would be so fun."
It's just been such a blast, and I love her sarcastic, snarky old man tone of, "We're gonna die." I love that they're always on the brink of some sort of adventure where Jun's very optimistic and Tom's very courageous, and I feel like Alex is like, "Ugh, here we go... I never thought it would end this way." And you're like, "My God, Alex, you're 15!" How do you say no to that?
I also love that it's something of a journey with her, because in the first episode I would not have expected so many of those things you just described. But as we go on, she opens up a lot more and we see all these different dimensions. Can you talk about building that character episode by episode?
Aimee Garcia: Yes, you nailed it. My favorite characters are ones that blossom in front of your eyes. And you're right, she barely says anything in the first few episodes. She prefers animals and technology to humans, so she does not have any friends. She's kind of a loner, but it's her fault because she doesn't leave her room. She's scared of the world and very guarded. As you saw the trailer, she's always holding her tablet up in front of her face and is just a glass half empty kind of girl.
And you're right that she goes from not wanting to leave her room to finding her voice through her dragon and through these misfit characters, so it's really fun to play. They really help her find not only a family and a home, but they also help her find herself. We have a saying in Spanish: "Dime con quién andas, y te diré quién eres," which means, "Tell me who you surround yourself with, and I'll tell you who you are." And I feel like Alex surrounds herself with adventurous and curious souls, optimists and adventure seekers, so they kind of rub off on her.
Even her dragon has puppy energy. Feathers is very rambunctious and has lots of energy, so it's really fun to see Alex literally blossom and come out of her shell after making friends [and meeting Feathers]. Because I think that's so relatable, to be nervous and scared but then doing things even though you're scared. I feel like that's what she does and what we're rooting for.
Exactly, and I was going ask about Feathers next. Going all the way back to Toothless, it feels like each dragon is exactly what each kid needs. What would you say Feathers brings out of Alex, and what kind of dragon would you get in your own life?
Aimee Garcia: How does Feathers help Alex? gosh, in so many ways. If it wasn't for Feathers, Alex would still be in her room in front of her computer. I don't think any other person could draw her out - I really think it's Feathers, more than Tom and Jun, that initially bring her out.
There's something just so magical about this dragon that looks like an exotic bird. It's so colorful and rambunctious; it can turn invisible and has a sonic scream. It's so funny to me that the girl who barely talks connects with a dragon whose sonic scream is so loud that it becomes a concussive weapon that can knock other dragons out of the sky. You put the loudest of the dragons with the quietest of the riders, and that is such a fun combination.
Your best friend might be your polar opposite, but you wouldn't have it any other way. I think that Feathers literally helps Alex find her voice and put her laptop - if not away, at least bring her tablet down for more than two seconds. And I think Feathers really helps Alex find her courage and her strength. It's funny because the first time they meet, I think Alex actually scares Feathers equally. This huge dragon is just scared by this girl that doesn't say anything, but she's got a hell of a scream. I think that there's something so fun about that and playful. They're just kismet, and they're so fun together.
As far as what kind of dragon I would have? That's a really good question. I love chocolate, so I have to have a dragon that loves to eat chocolate. I wonder if I would have a dragon that can not only fly but also go underwater, because I'm actually really terrified-slash-awed by the ocean.
I was just in Belize and I saw - maybe this is why I think dragons exist - a Manta ray that I think was about 25 feet wide. This was a perfect Alex moment. I'm on the boat, and all of a sudden the fisherman's like, "Get in the water with it." I said, "You're crazy," and he said, "If you don't do it, you're gonna regret it. It's a once in a lifetime opportunity." So, I got in the water with this ginormous creature, and it went at atomic speed. It's one of the biggest Manta rays - I think the biggest recorded one was 29 feet - and I was so awed and so scared. I still can't believe I did it.
So, I'd like to have a dragon that could be that big, can swim underwater and then fly. I think that would be really cool.
That would be amazing. Once Alex is more integrated into the group of kids, what is the dynamic between her, Tom, Jun and the whole crew?
Aimee Garcia: Tom is fearless. He goes full speed ahead; jump first, ask questions later. Then Jun is very spiritual, and like a historian that knows all about mythology and believes in the unseen, while Tom is more of like a scientist. He loves hard facts while Jun is like, "I just have a feeling,." She's much more intuitive.
And then Marcus [Scribner]'s character D'Angelo is hysterical. I dare you not to laugh at every line that he says; he is such a riot. He comes from a military family, so his dad super strict with him. But he's just a lovable goofball. He has also no filter and is probably the most athletic of all of them. Everyone kind of gets along with him, because he's just so fun.
I would say that Alex and Jun are polar opposites. Jun feels like they're going to be okay, and Alex thinks they're gonna die. She's like, "I didn't think that this was the day it was gonna end," and you're like, "Come on. Have a little faith." Then D'Angelo is almost like Alex's dragon, feisty and fun, while Alex comes from a place of caution.
I feel like the dynamic is really her being like, "No..." and then the other ones being like, "Yeah!"
The Nine Realms takes place 1300 years after the rest the franchise, which is quite a leap. Did you have a lot of discussions about covering the ground between those times? Or did you just dive right in with the script?
Aimee Garcia: We kind of just dove right in, which I think was smart. Because at this point, dragons are legends. They're mythical creatures that no one has ever seen, but just heard of. Some ancestors of ancestors spoke of a story long ago, and in it there were these creatures.
I think it was so smart to just start with the earth opening up all of a sudden and tons of earthquakes and electricity is going off. It's this natural phenomenon that no one can explain, which I thought it was really cool to have.
And not only is it a global show behind the scenes - I think there's about 200 countries involved in making this production happen - but onscreen there are scientists from all over the world who come and figure out what's going on. They bring their kids, and then the kids discover that there's been all these things happening with the fissures opening up because of the dragons - but they have to keep it secret.
That's a really smart jumping off point. It's still honoring the creativity that made the franchise such a hit, which is these creatures opening up these kids and being exactly what these kids need to be the best versions of themselves. All the heart and the humor and the adventure is all there, but I think it's also so cool to see this diversity. How beautiful is it that you have a descendent of a Viking and a Latina scientist with two moms? And we have a wonderful goofball Black character who steals every scene with his humor then, and then Jun who is of Asian descent.
It reflects the world that we're in right now while still keeping the beautiful traditions of the original franchise, which is the perfect combo of How to Train Your Dragon and The Nine Realms.
This is far from your first venture into voice acting, and you have such a rich voice that's perfect for it too. What is it that draws you to it, as opposed to live action? And how do you find the right voice for a character like Alex?
Aimee Garcia: I have done a lot of voiceover - a lot of people don't even know I narrated Spanglish back in the day. I didn't know what I was really doing, but I was working with the creator of The Simpsons, James L. Brooks, so that was really fun.
I think I love doing voiceover, because you are only limited by your imagination. It's really cool that you are helping the animators create stuff, and I love the team effort of it. And I love that you can't over-voice. You can overact and be too big, but you can't be too big in voice. You're only limited by what you're not willing to do.
I tend to have a little gravel in my voice, so sometimes I get asked to do boy voices. I think in The Addams Family, they were like, "Can you do a boy voice too?" And for Alex, it's a little bit raspy, which I think is perfect because it shows her hesitance.
I like the fact that she doesn't have a crisp voice, which I don't think would fit her sarcastic pessimism. She's like a 99-year-old man with a cigarette coming out of her mouth. Our director was always encouraging me that, even when she screams, she's got a raspy-ness to her voice. She's a little higher than I am, but she still has a little bit of gravel. I wanted to bring in her teen youth, but also give her that old soul vibe. And it's not what you want to hear when you're on the brink of an adventure with possible death, and dragons are for whatever reason unable to help you. You don't want your friend to be like, "Well, it's been fun."
I think kids will love it, because kids are smarter than you think. Especially now, they're like little adults. I think a show like this is one adults will love and kids will love. It's something for the whole family, and there's multiple episodes, so it's brand new every day if you want.
Dragons: The Nine Realms premieres on Hulu and Peacock December 23.