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Dragons are as ancient in folklore as they are in pop culture, and whenever one makes an appearance, awe and fixation soon follow.
Thanks to technology, dragons have grown beyond legends and cave paintings we only hear in folklore and tales. Technological advances coupled with creative minds have brought dragons to movies and television shows with differing degrees of success.
Some scared the pants off moviegoers in theaters, while others intrigued viewers from the confines of their living room.
Here are our top 15 dragons in movies and TV shows, in no particular order. Let’s get right to it!
Top 15 Wonderful Dragons in Movies
1. Drogon
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Drogon was born alongside his two brothers, Viserion and Rhaegal, from the three eggs given to Daenerys Targaryen as a wedding gift. They grew up to become the only living dragons in existence. And when Drogon’s brothers, Viserion and Rhaegal, died, he became the only living dragon in existence.
While the demise of his brothers left the television series, Game of Thrones, lovers screaming for horror, he was the only one that could survive, seeing as he was bigger and more formidable than his dragonkin.
The Mother of Dragons, Daenerys Targaryen, with Drogon won many great battles on their conquest to take back Kings Landing. Drogon wiped out a fleet of ships, destroyed the city’s gate, laid waste to towns and armies in Kings Landing, and the most heroic, he melted the iron throne.
Speaking of melting, Drogon’s fire breathing abilities, amongst many others, was the fascinating thing about him. Unlike many dragons, his fire doesn’t just set objects ablaze and it completely decimates them. It’s more like a concussive blast – similar to Cyclops optic beam- and can break the stone.
While Drogon may not possess the human-like intelligence of some of the dragons we’ve seen in movies and television shows, he was powerful enough to turn the tide of any given engagement in Game of Thrones.
2. Smaug
Source by: Fandom
Smaug is as knowledgeable as he is frightening and formidable. The destruction of Lake-town by Smaug made Drogon’s destruction of Kings Landing almost as easy as the scratch of a kitten. He would rain down fire on villages from hundreds of feet in the air.
Smaug was said to be a giant dragon in Middle-earth. He swiped the treasure of the dwarves and secluded himself inside the Lonely Mountain to admire his wealth. He was there for about 150 years until he was intruded on by Thorin and company, who sought to retrieve the stolen wealth. Smaug didn’t take this intrusion well as he demolished and wiped out most of the nearby villages.
Smaug’s rage, selfishness, and cruelty were given an extra shot of intensity, thanks to some superb voice-acting from Benedict Cumberbatch.
The 2014’s Movie, The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, really gave some moviegoers sleepless nights and also, some chill of awe at the same time.
3. Vermithrax Pejorative
Source by: Fandom
Vermithrax Pejorative not only captured the spirit of the beast but also captured the heart of moviegoers and left some with sleepless nights.
Vermithtrax Pejorative was an evil dragon whose masterpiece practical effects, such as the brand-new go-motion technique – replacing jerkier stop-motion – plus several articulated life-size models, brought a sense of realism and belief to the genre.
In fact, 25 percent of the film’s budget was explicitly dedicated to the special effects needed to bring Vermithrax to life.
Basically, the movie, Dragonslayer, is about an old sorcerer and his apprentice, Galen, called by the citizens of the valley to help kill a fire-breathing dragon that is terrorizing the town. Upon their arrival at the place to tackle the situation, things take a turn for the worse. The sorcerer is killed, and Galen is left alone to deal with the problems.
4. Draco
Source by: Monster Legacy
Rob Cohen’s 1996 Dragonheart is both fun and touching and features Oscar-nominated effects. It centers around the world’s last dragon teaming up with a redundant dragon slayer, Sir Bowen.
The pair create a mutually beneficial double act where the dragon pretends to attack vulnerable villages, and the slayer turns up to defeat it – all for a handsome reward, of course. This little prank goes well for some time until they are faced with danger and have to help out, this time for real.
The dragon design, effects, genius casting of Sean Connery, whose voicing of Draco brings life and emotion into this early CGI beast and adds profound chemistry to the beast/human relationships.
5. King Ghidorah
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Talk of relentless foes, and King Ghidorah, with his three heads, is on top of that list. Kaiju Godzilla has had to face this three-headed wyvern, King Ghidorah, since the 1964 movie; Ghidorah Three Headed Dragon. He has since been regarded as Godzilla’s most dangerous and lethal enemy.
This particular dragon wasn’t born to Earth, but in fact, it is an alien creature who came to Earth to demolish the planet.
King Ghidorah’s three-headed design is a significant deviation from traditional dragons. It gives it an edge in combat, especially since they are all capable of releasing gravity beams from their mouths. And when it comes to war, he is very formidable, fierce, and ruthless.
In 2019, King Ghidorah – with more extensive straighter horns on his primary head and more enormous wings – appeared to battle Godzilla for supremacy in the movie; King of the Monsters.
6. Falkor
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Falkor is quite the opposite of the traditional dragons we are used to. Contrary to other dragons bringing destruction, Falkor brings luck, companionship, and bliss.
Falkor is gentle, kind, fun to be with, full of humor, but very mischievous and cunny. In the movie Neverending Story, falkor is featured as a trusted and loyal friend of Atreyu and was helpful in his battle against the Nothing.
And when it seemed it was a dead-end, all hope had been lost, Falkor didn’t betray his friend; instead, he stood by him and provided comfort as much as he could.
Falkor’s character made viewers believe this beast of a creature can be very humane too.
7. Toothless
Source by: Metro
Toothless is not on the list of vicious hunters or mean-killing machines, but he’s more of a dragon with intellect. How to Train Your Dragon explores the understanding of having and loving a pet. The intimate relationship between Hiccup and Toothless is, in fact, the dynamic on which this movie thrives.
With Toothless and Hiccup coming together and learning to trust and, ultimately, saving both the human and dragon populations. Toothless greatest strength will be his speed and skill; at his top speeds, Toothless can clock around 100 mph.
Moreso, Toothless also possesses the ability to switch into an alpha mode, where his cute and cuddly disposition is wholly shed. And in this mode, he could battle the massive dragon alpha and win.
Toothless, who is much more of an overgrown puppy, is loveable, man’s best friend with his graceful big eyes inducing awe and wonder instead of fear as he glides through the skies.
8. Hungarian Horntail
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Hungarian Horntail is considered the most dangerous of all the dragons in the Harry Potter Universe. The Horntail is a lethal, brutal, fierce beast with an extremely high-temperature flame.
And when you talk of speed and agility in the air, he leads the pack. The Horntail is renowned for its exceptional aggression, especially when it comes to defending its young.
The Horntail is most distinctive for its horned head and spiked tail, along with some unique traits of classic dragon imagery. While this dragon would do very wonderfully in a claw-to-claw matchup, some believe other dragons may have stronger flames.
9. Bull Dragon
Source by: Greco Westermann
While considering the sniffy reviews and poor box office, Reign of Fire remains one of the most impressively thrilling dragon films ever. And just like the name, it’s basically about the rain of fire; after all, wherever you have plenty of dragons, they do what they do best: fly around, setting things on fire.
The reign of dragons features prehistoric dragons that were believed to be responsible for the extinction of dinosaurs. Most of the dragons in the film were female, but the only male dragon measuring about 150 feet long, with a wingspan of 320 feet, was the leading cause of the demolition of many cities across the globe, notably in London.
Like many other dragon movies, the Bull Dragon provides a delightful bunch of old-school monsters who threaten humankind like a plague of devils. Modern weapons weren’t sufficient to kill him, and he did a lot of damage before he was finally killed.
10. Hydra
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Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, along with his band of mercenaries, encountered several creatures on their mercy mission around the ancient world. One creature that gave Dwane Johnson a run for his money was Hydra.
Like Hercules, the legendary hero of the myth, Hydra posed a great threat to his act of heroism. And he, Hydra, was almost impossible to kill, especially when it grows another head after one is cut off.
The fire-breathing ability of this beast and his agility in the air put Hydra among the most dangerous, but the fact that he grows a new head when one is cut off places him way beyond other dragons.
11. Fellbeast
Source by: Game Rant
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, along with his band of mercenaries, encountered several creatures on their mercy mission around the ancient world. One creature that gave Dwane Johnson a run for his money was Hydra.
Like Hercules, the legendary hero of the myth, Hydra posed a great threat to his act of heroism. And he, Hydra, was almost impossible to kill, especially when it grows another head after one is cut off.
The fire-breathing ability of this beast and his agility in the air put Hydra among the most dangerous, but the fact that he grows a new head when one is cut off places him way beyond other dragons.
12. Granamyr
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Granamyr is the lord of the dragons living at Darksmoke, an area isolated away from Eternia’s human crowd. Granamyr is unique and the principal protagonist, amongst others, in the 1980s classic cartoon series, He-man.
It seems Granamyr might have shared an ugly past with humans as his dislike for Homo sapiens is relatively not conventional. And while he might not be among the fire-breathing vicious killers, Granamyr is a powerful sorcerer and a wise scholar.
Thanks to He-man’s actions, Granamyr and dragons begin to view man with more empathy and a newly found respect. Granamyr’s wisdom and patience would take it even further.
13. Mother Dragon
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Nothing triggers the wrath of a mother dragon than attacking her younglings. And killing any of her babies would, of course, unleash the fury of the mother dragon extremely. The killer might not live to tell the tale. Well, it seems the story ends differently for Babydoll.
In the movie Sucker Punch, Babydoll and the girls embark on a journey to retrieve two crystals buried inside a baby dragon. In the process, they slaughter the baby creature, and, of course, they incur the wrath of its furious mother – a fire-breathing behemoth of epic proportions.
It ends with a super-stylized slow-motion shot of Babydoll leaping into the air to drive her katana through its skull and slaying the dragon.
14. Elliot
Source by: Screen Daily
While on a road trip, Pete loses both his parents in a collision with a deer. Pete believes he’s got no one else to cater for him and be a companion, only for a huge dragon, with yellow eyes, green fur, and enormous wings to appear and take him in as his own.
The dragon protects Pete from wolves in the forests, provides companionship, and saves him from his grief.
While Pete’s Dragon is essentially a mythic children’s adventure, Elliot is still a fantastic dragon in his own right, who keeps Pete safe and also protects his arboreal home from the loggers who try to ruin it.
15. Taro
Source by: Monster Moviepedia
Taro is a large, four-legged scaly creature that looks like a typical European dragon in every way but devoid of wings. In 1958 and many years before, Taro was the most frightening creature ever seen on the screen.
Developed by movie wizard Roy Harryhausen, who specialized in advanced visual effects, Taro, featured in fantasy epic the 7th Voyage of Sinbad, is fierce and formidable. And that couldn’t be ascertained better than when Taro battled Cyclop of Greek mythology, both of which were antagonists of Sinbad on his mysterious journey.
Taro came out victorious in the battle as he crushed the giant Cyclops beneath between his front legs.
FAQs About the Dragons in Movies
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What films have a dragon in?
What is the largest dragon in movies?
Smaug is big enough to take over an entire dwarven mountain, and terrorize the countryside.
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There you have our top 15 dragons from movies and television shows. Which of the dragons is your favorite? You can also know more characters in the blog 18 Iconic Dinosaur Characters from The Movies, TV, & Games and the blog 20 Best Dinosaur Cartoon Movies for Kids: The Latest List if you need.
You could, as well, become your favorite dragon with our dragon costumes during any themed party or just for everyday fun.
