A live-action ‘Legend of Zelda’ film is in the works

Nintendo and Sony plan to bring Link and Zelda to the big screen.

Link and Zelda are comfortably up there with the likes of Lara Croft, Crash Bandicoot, Sonic the Hedgehog, and Mario and Luigi as the most instantly recognisable faces in the history of video games.

Well it's good news for fans of Hyrule and its inhabitants...

Shigeru Miyamot, the creator and game developer behind The Legend of Zelda franchise, has announced plans to make a feature-length film.

The gaming legend announced the news via Nintendo's official X account:

“This is Miyamoto. I have been working on the live-action film of The Legend of Zelda for many years now with Avi Arad-san, who has produced many mega hit films.”

Hyrule goes Hollywood.

He continued:

“I have asked Avi-san to produce this film with me, and we have now officially started the development of the film with Nintendo itself heavily involved in the production. It will take time until its completion, but I hope you look forward to seeing it.”

The movie will be directed by Wes Ball, the man behind the Maze Runner trilogy and the upcoming Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.

Miyamoto is no stranger to the screen either, having helped produce the 2023 box office hit Super Mario Bros. Movie.

The Zelda movie will be co-produced by Avi Arad, who has worked on every live-action “Spider-Man” movie and the “Spider-Verse” animated films.

Zelda continues to be popular

Excitement for the Legend of Zelda live-action film has already been building since the announcement, and it's hard not to see why.

With over 150 million copies sold since 1986, Zelda is Nintendo's second biggest franchise behind Mario.

Its latest iteration, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, sold over 10 million copies in its first three days back in May.

That makes it the fastest-selling Zelda game of all time.

The film will be co-financed by Nintendo and Sony Pictures Entertainment.

Nintendo will cough up over 50% of the finances, while Sony will handle the theatrical distribution.

Miyamoto remained tight-lipped when it came to plot and casting details.