The majority of Disney Studios’ time slot at the 2016 CinemaCon was taken up with 27 minutes of Finding Dory footage no one is allowed to write about yet followed by the full screening of Captain America: Civil War. However, before the studio introduced the footage from the much-anticipated Finding Nemo spin-off, other films on the Mouse House’s slate were discussed including Pete’s Dragon. The 2016 version of the 1977 family friendly adventure film is directed by David Lowery (Ain’t Them Bodies Saints) and stars Bryce Dallas Howard, Robert Redford, Karl Urban, Wes Bentley, and Oakes Fegley, with Disney aiming for an August 12th theatrical release.
Bryce Dallas Howard plays a forest ranger in the new Pete’s Dragon and at CinemaCon where she was honored with the Award for Excellence in Acting, Dallas Howard discussed the appeal of starring in Disney’s new take on the story of a boy and his best friend, Elliott the dragon. She also talked about her father, Ron Howard, and her career.
Watch the Bryce Dallas Howard interview:
The Plot: For years, old wood carver Mr. Meacham (Redford) has delighted local children with his tales of the fierce dragon that resides deep in the woods of the Pacific Northwest. To his daughter, Grace (Howard), who works as a forest ranger, these stories are little more than tall tales…until she meets Pete (Fegley). Pete is a mysterious 10-year-old with no family and no home who claims to live in the woods with a giant, green dragon named Elliott. And from Pete’s descriptions, Elliott seems remarkably similar to the dragon from Mr. Meacham’s stories. With the help of Natalie (Oona Laurence), an 11-year-old girl whose father Jack (Bentley) owns the local lumber mill, Grace sets out to determine where Pete came from, where he belongs, and the truth about this dragon.
