It’s official: The Legend of Zelda is coming to the silver screen in a live-action adaptation.
Produced by none other than Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto and Avi Arad, producer of such films as the original Spider-Man trilogy, The Legend of Zelda film will be co-financed by Sony Pictures and Nintendo with “more than 50 percent” financed by the game company, according to a release from Nintendo today.
Theatrical distribution will be handled by Sony Pictures Entertainment, marking a huge partnership between two rivals in the gaming space coming together to make something special.
“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,” Miyamoto said in a statement. “It will take time until its completion, but I hope you look forward to seeing it.”
Nintendo found huge success at the box office with its Super Mario Bros. Movie earlier this year, but a live-action retelling of one of gaming’s most popular franchises is something new.
“By getting deeply involved in the movie production with the aim to put smiles on everyone’s faces through entertainment, Nintendo will continue its efforts to produce unique entertainment and deliver it to as many people as possible,” Nintendo said in the release.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie grossed $1.36 billion worldwide, so it’s not surprising to see Nintendo push harder to bring its IPs to the big screen. Between Mario and Zelda, and previous films in the Pokémon universe, Nintendo seems intent on continuing the trend of bringing quality films to fans.
Let the speculation begin on who should play legendary characters like Link, Zelda, and Ganon in this live-action adaptation. The anticipation and hype over the next few years leading up to the movie’s reveal and eventual release are likely to break the internet for gamers.
With a ton of varied source material and different story ideas, timelines, and plotlines to pull from, it will be exciting to see what Zelda story Nintendo and Sony Pictures choose to be told in live action.
