Entertainment
‘The Legend of Zelda’ Movie’s First Images Look Like Nintendo Is Heading in the Right Direction With This Live-Action Adaptation
If you are a Nintendo fan, you have definitely seen the first images of the upcoming The Legend of Zelda movie. Giving us our first glimpse into Hyrule and actors Bo Bragason and Benjamin Evan Ainsworth as Princess Zelda and Link, respectively, these images have gotten Zelda fans talking at length about whether the actors look like their characters (they do) and whether their characterization is appropriate (they definitely are). The thing is, while those are certainly relevant questions, the main thing these pictures tell us isn’t really about the cast and characters, but the setting. While there is no information about the actual story of the movie, the images may contain a hint of what Zelda game may be coming to the big screen.
The First Images of ‘The Legend of Zelda’ Hint at a ‘Breath of the Wild’ Adaptation
The very idea that Zelda is getting a live-action movie is still wild, so it’s natural that the first thing everyone pays attention to when looking at the first pictures are the actors. And, truth be told, both Bragason and Ainsworth look fantastic, which was a huge relief for the fans. Zelda’s characterization is particularly interesting, however, because, while Link is dressed in his iconic green tunic (minus the hat), she is wearing a blue suit with her long hair hanging down her back. For fans of the games, the reference is clear: Zelda’s costume is a nod to 2017’s Breath of the Wild, one of the best games in the franchise and arguably the best of them to adapt.
In Breath of the Wild, Zelda is the Princess of Hyrule and the last line of defense against Calamity Ganon, an unknown evil force that suddenly attacked the realm. For a hundred years, it has kept Hyrule in disarray as Zelda locked herself inside Hyrule Castle to fight Ganon and keep it from completely taking over until Link, Zelda’s protector and champion of Hyrule, wakes up from the slumber she put him in to protect him. Throughout the game, Link must rebuild his strength to face Ganon and save both his princess and his kingdom, all the while traveling around Hyrule to help the people in equally important side quests.
At the core of Breath of the Wild is exploration. It’s the first open-world Zelda game, meaning there are no limits to where Link can physically reach, something that is also hinted at in the first pictures of the movie. Both Bragason and Ainsworth get individual headshots, but they appear together in one picture, with the background taking up more space than them. This is surely meant to evoke the feeling of exploration from Breath of the Wild, where Hyrule is just as important a character as Link and Zelda. The movie is also currently filming in New Zealand, a country known for being the setting of other iconic fantasy lands, so it’s hard not to get excited about this prospect.
The Movie Should Incorporate at Least Some of the Key Elements of ‘Breath of the Wild’
Of course, Zelda’s costume and the use of background in the pictures don’t necessarily mean that the movie will adapt Breath of the Wild to the letter — and, to be fair, it also shouldn’t — but there are certainly some aspects and traits of this game that the movie could really benefit from. First, the very open-world aspect of it. Highlighting the background in the pictures implies a more “adventure-based” story for the movie, as opposed to the traditional dungeons that Zelda games were known for before Breath of the Wild. This had always puzzled fans who wanted a live-action Zelda, because the dungeon structure never favored this kind of storytelling. It could fit an animated series, for example, but never a movie.
The greatest benefit from adapting Breath of the Wild, however, is Zelda herself. Even though the franchise is called The Legend of Zelda, before the 2017 game, the title character has rarely been more than a damsel in need of rescue. She is certainly powerful and plays key roles in games like Ocarina of Time, The Wind Waker, and Twilight Princess, for example, but the story ultimately boils down to Link having to rescue her and save Hyrule by himself. Breath of the Wild and its sequel, Tears of the Kingdom, break this mold by giving her an actual backstory complete with stakes and sacrifices that pretty much shape the story that the player gets to experience as Link. She isn’t a playable character, but she has more agency in the games than in their predecessors.
The fact that Bo Bragason has been getting as much visibility (if not more) than Benjamin Evan Ainsworth so far strongly implies that Zelda will be just as important for the movie as Link. The image that features both of them shows Zelda upfront with a bow, with Link right behind her, alluding exactly to their dynamics in Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom: she is the leader, and he is her guardian. With two great games like these to draw from, it would make no sense for the movie to give Zelda a less important role than Link. The title of the franchise is famously confusing for newcomers, for example, as Zelda is just a background character, so let’s fix this with the movie.
Nintendo Has Mixed Elements From Different Games in Other Films Before
What Nintendo has proved so far since its return to the big screen is that it doesn’t actually believe in straightforward adaptations of its games. The Super Mario Bros. Movie, for example, is an amalgamation of many different Super Mario stories and elements that doesn’t actually rely on gameplay mechanics for its story, but uses them as nods to die-hard fans and development sequences, like Mario (Chris Pratt) training in the Mushroom Kingdom. The Super Mario Galaxy Movie promises the same thing: even though it shares its name with the Nintendo Wii game, the first trailer has shown elements from Super Mario Sunshine and Super Mario Odyssey, too.
What this means for The Legend of Zelda is that, even if the movie does lean heavily on Breath of the Wild, it likely won’t draw exclusively from that game when telling a story or incorporating lore and mechanics into its narrative. As difficult as it is to make a movie around it, the dungeon system of the earlier Zelda games has to be featured in the movie somehow, for example, even if only as a nod, otherwise it will surely let fans down. Other mechanics can’t be ignored, too, like Link riding his horse, the faithful Epona, and the countless items he carries around, too. Even his green tunic is essential, even though he wears a blue one in Breath of the Wild.
So, if the Zelda movie really turns out to adapt Breath of the Wild, the game itself will probably be more of a framework for the story to develop around it rather than a blueprint. The game itself offers players a lot of freedom to do what they want the way they want, making it the perfect sandbox for storytellers to write new things in it. There is enough room to incorporate classic battle mechanics, do some exploration, and even throw in a dungeon for good measure, too, all without breaking what Breath of the Wild stands for as a game and Zelda stands for as a franchise. The most important thing, apparently, the first images have already proven we will get: Link and Zelda going on an adventure together.
The Legend of Zelda premieres on May 7, 2027.
- Release Date
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May 7, 2027
- Writers
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Derek Connolly
- Producers
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Shigeru Miyamoto, Avi Arad
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Benjamin Evan Ainsworth
Link
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Bo Bragason
Princess Zelda
