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Nintendo's next cinematic event is set to light the world on fire in 2027--and it may already be on the way to becoming a full-fledged franchise. After the tremendous success of The Super Mario Bros. Movie and The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, a brand-new live-action adaptation of The Legend of Zeldais on the horizon, aiming for a release on April 30.
Nintendo is still keeping a lid on most of the details about its highly anticipated The Legend of Zelda adaptation, which marks the first time that the iconic video game franchise has ever made it to the big screen. While there are still several months left until the film hits theaters, Nintendo may have just dropped its biggest hint yet that it won't be a one-off movie event, but a full-fledged franchise with at least one sequel (and potentially many more).
The Legend of Zelda Is Shaping Up to Be a Big Franchise
With just a few months left until The Legend of Zelda hits theaters, the toy company Hasbro has made a massive announcement that could spoil the franchise's plans for future installments. On July 16, Hasbro officially announced that it had entered into a "multi-year partnership" with Nintendo to release new toys based on The Legend of Zelda. They plan to give fans their first sneak peek at the next line at San Diego Comic Con 2026 before the figures finally hit toy store shelves next year.
This partnership obviously comes at the perfect time to capitalize on 2027's The Legend of Zelda film adaptation. However, the "multi-year" angle should catch fans' attention. This isn't just a one-off team-up between Nintendo and Hasbro, but rather a crossover that is meant to carry on for the foreseeable future.
While it's still too early to tell exactly what Nintendo's plans are, this announcement makes it abundantly likely that a sequel is already in the cards for The Legend of Zelda before it even hits theaters. This wouldn't be surprising, especially after the massive box office successes of both The Super Mario Bros. Movie and The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.
In fact, Nintendo may already have plans to develop a full-fledged franchise following Link, Princess Zelda, and the rest of the iconic video game cast. This could end up being one of Nintendo's longest-running movie franchises, with dozens of video games to adapt and plenty of lore to delve into over many years.
What to Expect From the Legend of Zelda Movie Adaptation
Although the film is less than a year away, Nintendo has revealed very little information about the upcoming The Legend of Zelda adaptation. It hits theaters on April 30, 2027, and has only two cast members officially confirmed. Benjamin Evan Ainsworth, star of 2022's Pinocchio and The Haunting of Bly Manor, will star as Hyrule's legendary hero, Link. Meanwhile, Bo Bragason, known for her work in King and Conqueror and Renegade Nell, will play the titular Princess Zelda.
While Ainsworth and Bragason are the only confirmed cast members, others have been heavily rumored in the Nintendo fandom. This includes Severance's Dichen Lachman, who is rumored to be playing Zelda's loyal bodyguard Impa in the film. Many fans expect Ganondorf to appear as the main villain of the adaptation, but an actor has yet to be revealed for the iconic antagonist. Beyond that, no other actors are confirmed for 2027's The Legend of Zelda.
The upcoming video game adaptation is helmed by Wes Ball. The director is best known for his work on The Maze Runner franchise and, more recently, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. This is only Ball's fifth feature film and his first-ever partnership with Nintendo. He will once again team up with Maze Runner screenwriter T.S. Nowlin.
It's currently unclear which exact entry of the video game franchise The Legend of Zelda will adapt, if any. There are more than twenty games in the main franchise, many of which would make terrific material for a film adaptation. Iconic entries like Ocarina of Time or Breath of the Wild feel perfectly suited for the big screen. Nevertheless, it remains entirely possible that the movie will opt for an original story, incorporating bits and pieces from different games, similar to how the animated Mario franchise has operated so far.
But, given that The Legend of Zelda tends to be more story-based than Mario, it would make more sense for this franchise to adhere more closely to the storyline of the games. As interesting as it would be to see an original story for the film adaptation, it also seems like an oversight to ignore the iconic narratives of the games. Even if the 2027 film doesn't directly adapt a particular game, however, there always remains a chance that one of the sequels could reverse course and stick more closely to the source material.
Nintendo Is Building Its Own Cinematic Universe
The Legend of Zelda is just one of the many Nintendo projects to hit the big screen. Over the last few years, the iconic video game company has completely smashed its long-standing hesitation to adapt its most popular properties into films (which was caused by the egregious 1993 Super Mario Bros. film). Now, almost every Nintendo video game franchise is fair game for an adaptation, whether live-action or animated.
This new trend began with 2023's The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which broke $1 billion at the box office to become one of the highest-grossing video game adaptations of all time. Its sequel, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, was released earlier this year, reaching similar heights and proving that the predecessor's success was not a fluke.
Now, Nintendo is emboldened to adapt many more of its characters and franchises for the big screen. The Super Mario Galaxy Movie sets up numerous possible spin-offs, potentially including a Starfox adaptation or something in the world of the Pikmin. There have also been rumors that Donkey Kong could be getting his own spin-off after mostly sitting out of the 2026 sequel.
The Legend of Zelda marks the first live-action Nintendo adaptation since Detective Pikachu in 2019. While some fans have expressed disappointment that Nintendo opted for a live-action adaptation over animation, it will be intriguing to see how this new film compares to the Mario movies of the last few years. With many sequels potentially on the way, it could grow into one of Nintendo's most unique and compelling movie franchises.
There also remains some potential for Nintendo to bring all of its movie adaptations together into one crossover franchise, similar to the MCU's Avengers or the DCEU's Justice League. The obvious outlet for this would be a Super Smash Bros. adaptation, featuring all of Nintendo's most iconic characters from across its many franchises. Although the studio has made no official statement about this kind of crossover, it has been a topic of conversation with the fans ever since The Super Mario Bros. movie.
Before that can happen, however, Nintendo still has plenty of other video games and iconic characters to adapt, not the least of which include Kirby, Metroid, Pokémon, and Fire Emblem. Many of these are already perfectly suited to big-screen adaptations, whether live-action or animated. So long as these films continue to perform well at the box office, as they already have been, Nintendo could grow into one of the most successful franchises of the 2020s and beyond.
The Legend of Zelda hits theaters on April 30, 2027.
