Last year, Nintendo confirmed that a live-action movie based on The Legend of Zelda video game franchise was in the works.
This follows Nintendo’s highly successful Super Mario Bros. movie released in 2023. What followed the Zelda movie’s announcement was a mixture of unfettered fan excitement and also, sensible caution, as both the animated Zelda cartoon (1980s) and the live-action Super Mario movie (1993) had a worse-than-mixed reception.
A big question is what kind of movie would suit Zelda? Would an animated movie, in the style of Studio Ghibli, have been a safer option for Nintendo? After all, the games do not usually use a realistic style, so how could live-action work?
Live-action means that the sets and costumes will have to look professional and realistic. If Nintendo can get a company on the level of The Lord of the Ring’s Weta Workshop for special effects everything should look fine. But, what are the chances that this movie flops because it has gone live-action? Interestingly, the BBC revealed that Nintendo are teaming up with their console rivals, Sony, to produce this film. Fingers crossed it’s a partnership that works.
Live-action vs Animated
The Legend of Zelda is a series with a rich history. Usually, one or two entries release on each Nintendo platform. They are some of the best experiences in console gaming. Zelda games are defined by explorative elements, puzzle solving, and combat. While the stories are good, the narrative is sometimes an afterthought as the story is told more through the rich game world, characters, and style of the environments.
For this reason, people are slightly worried about how this will translate into a movie. Link, the main character does not even speak in most of the games. In Wind Waker and Ocarina of Time, he makes a few screams and shouts while in combat, and that is as far as his dialogue goes. However, that isn’t to say that he’s without character, as the three words that I’d use to describe him would be stoic, noble, and honorable. If we were to base a movie character off him, we’d probably get something of a cross between The Lord of the Rings’ Aragorn, Legolas, and Frodo.
The Lord of the Rings may be an inspiration for this new Zelda film. We know that Twilight Princess was inspired by The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy and was a response to the negative feedback received for the art style of Wind Waker. However, Twilight Princess is obviously still a game so, to recreate something like that, in movie form is a completely different task.
An anime or similar animated style could work in theory, since you can more easily draw what you imagine, compared to creating actual physical sets, props, and costumes. However, CGI may still play a prominent role now that we know that the film will be live-action.
Director/Producer and Miyamoto’s influence
Miyamoto has said on Twitter that he has been working on this project with producer Avi Arad for ten years. Rumors of a Zelda movie had been circulating for a few years, but it was surprising that development went on for that long. Hopefully, that means that conceptual problems, such as whether to have Link wear his traditional green, have been ironed out.
Avi Arad is a producer who’s been involved in many superhero movies, notably all live-action Spider-Man movies and Venom. This could be a good sign, as Arad is experienced in movie adaptations. He’s had a few hits but also a few misses. The Zelda film could be an ambitious project. It’s still unknown whether he’ll be the right man for the job.
The film will be directed by Wes Ball. He directed the Maze Runner films. He is also directing Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. At 43 years old, Wes is a young director, and as he himself is a Zelda fan, hopefully, his youth and understanding of video games will be positive for the movie. Wes revealed to Entertainment Weekly, he wants the film to go in a “live-action Miyazaki” direction. Miyazaki is the creator of anime masterpieces such as Spirited Away and Howl’s Moving Castle. These stylish movies have a cozy feel to them, which would match well with the hopeful, colorful, and whimsical vibe of many Zelda games.
And while Avi Arad may have a mixed track record, the fact that he has been working on the film with Miyamoto for so long bodes well. Miyamoto will try his best for this film to be a success. I think Miyamoto values Zelda in a different, more nuanced way to Mario given the more mature undertones of Zelda. He might even hold it closer to his heart than Mario since the gameplay idea of exploring and finding caves, is directly inspired by his own childhood. For this reason, I hope that besides being a family adventure, the movie will also have deep themes and undertones.
Which Zelda game to use as a framework?
In relation to the thematic elements of the film, there’s still the massive question of which game the film will use as a guide. Will the film even use a specific game, or will the sets and costumes be more of a mishmash of many Zelda styles? If one were to guess, it would probably use a medieval style similar to Ocarina of Time or use the similar style to Breath of the Wild. If someone like Guillermo Del Toro was directing, a film based on the darkest Zelda, Majora’s Mask would seem like it could definitely work. However, a dark, mature, weird, and creepy style will probably not be the direction the first film in the franchise goes for. This first film will have to be a soft introduction to the series.
The fate of the Zelda movie, similarly to most of the games, could currently rest on the quality of the world that is built to create Hyrule. If the pre-production is dealt with the passion that the original The Lord of the Rings trilogy was handled with, then I’d have no doubt it would be a success. Wes Ball, being a fan of the series, and Miyamoto and Avi Arad, having been discussing the movie for years, bodes well.
However, the video game movie curse still seems to be present, with flops like Welcome to Racoon City still being released. As we hear more about the Zelda film, it’ll be really interesting how things come together, and hopefully, it’ll all be positive. For me personally, there is nothing about what has been announced that has got me excited. Things can change, though, and the movie could end up being a Zelda fan’s dream. Time will tell.
More Smash Jump: Check out Daniel’s feature on The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds and how it foreshadowed Breath of the Wild, and read how Shigeru Miyamoto has no plans to retire.
