It’s safe to say by now that gamers are living in one of the best times to be a Zelda fan. We’ve got amazing games, with the most recent being Tears of the Kingdom, an exciting and technical marvel. We’ve got a plethora of media such as VIZ Comics’s Twilight Princess that just finished up its 11th and final volume. Now, we have one more thing on the horizon to be both hyped and nervous about: Nintendo’s recent announcement of an official Legend of Zelda movie. That’s because the tidings of this exciting news comes with one little caveat. It’s planned to be a live-action movie instead of animated, like the Super Mario Bros. Movie co-produced with Universal Pictures and Illumination. Nintendo worked very closely with the production of the Mario movie to much success, but with the news of a live action Zelda on the rise, tension is in the air. Luckily, it seems Shigeru Miyamoto himself, who is one of the creators of The Legend of Zelda alongside Takashi Tezuka, is on the job.
During the 2024 Cannes Film festival, reporters from Deadline caught up with Sony President Tom Rothman and asked him a couple questions on various topics. One topic of interest was about the production of the Zelda movie and how it’s coming along. Deadline asked Rothman about what elements make a movie successful, and what pulls audiences into theaters. He responded that it starts with material, “because that’s what brings you the filmmaker. The idea and execution of [the material]. The freshness and the originality of it, is going to get you an exciting filmmaker and then that filmmaker will . . . attract the best cast.” Rothman said, “The Legend of Zelda is going to be huge for us. Massive.”
Deadline asked Rothman how Sony will handle The Legend of Zelda in the concerns of many video game adapted movies flopping, as was the case with the Monster Hunter movie. Such concerns are very real in the minds of many Zelda fans right now. Deadline asked, “Based on what you’re saying about movies needing to be great, people have looked at giant video games as IP and often, it has not worked. How does Zelda adhere to what you’ve said about freshness?” Rothman responded, “Because the movie is being developed and made in the closest possible collaboration with Shigeru Miyamoto. He’s a true genius in that world, and it’s really his strong vision that is motivating it. He created it and understands it thoroughly. You only need to look at the results of Super Mario Brothers to see.”
It’s assuring to know that Mr. Miyamoto is on the job. The fact that a movie of The Legend of Zelda is going to be live action has caused many fans to worry, given the low success rate of live action movies adapted from video games in the past four decades. Knowing that the creator of the series is trying his best to have as much input as possible on the movie is comforting, to say the least. With director Wes Ball at the reigns, some have faith he will deliver. Wes Ball is responsible for such movies as Maze Runner and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, and depending on who you ask this could be a good thing at best or simply okay at its worst. But with all of this weighed in, at least we know Mr. Miyamoto will be there to give his thumbs up or down on what he sees fit for the movie. Let’s hope the Hollywood ego doesn’t deter what potentially could be a great success. Sony, we got our eye on you.
