The much-anticipatedThe Legend of Zeldalive-action movie hasjust been delayed, prolonging fans' head-scratching for a few more months before it’s released in 2027. Nintendo has been poised to take its most iconic franchises to the big screen for a while now, andThe Super Mario Bros. Movieproved that it can be done, withZeldabeing the obvious next step. A live-action movie is the kind of bold swing that Nintendo likes, but fans have been wondering whether it’s a good idea at all, given how the games already have so much in common with theanime medium. So,as enticing as the idea of live-actionZeldais, we’ll say it: we’d much rather have aZeldaanime instead. It’sthe only wayto tell a story based on the original games without compromising everything that makes them so special.
‘The Legend of Zelda’ Already Shares a Lot With Shōnen Anime
One of the things that has been bugging fans concerning theZeldamovie isn’t really the casting or setting, but rather the structure.Zeldagames are usually structured into dungeons, with the plot itself divided into two parts: first, an unexpected quest forces Link to set out into the larger world and learn of his true purpose as the Hero of Hyrule; then, imbued with the newly acquired power of the Master Sword, he fulfills this purpose. These two parts are structured around smaller arcs, in which Link needs to identify the next dungeon, perform a series of tasks to open it, and then venture into and beat the dungeon. He levels up along the way, becoming stronger and collecting items that will help him on his journey.
This structure is very similar to what anime of the shōnen genre already do.The protagonist also levels upand grows more powerful along their journey, facing escalating threats typically structured around arcs, too. As they progress, the protagonist gets new abilities and allies, helps people around them, and ultimately overcomes more difficult obstacles on the way to fulfilling their purpose. There are countless classic and recent shōnen anime that prove how wellZeldawould fit this mold, fromFullmetal Alchemist: BrotherhoodtoDemon Slayer. This would allow not just Link, but other key characters, like Princess Zelda herself and Ganondorf, to become more complex as the series goes on and have time to develop them, not just the world of Hyrule.
Speaking of Hyrule, the kingdom itself is an important part of theZeldagames. Link may be from Hyrule, but his exploring the land and talking to people who need his help on side quests brings the games close toisekai, an anime genre in which the protagonist finds themselves in a strange land they need to save. Sometimes, it’s literal, liketheOraclegamesorMajora’s Mask, but evenBreath of the Wilddraws from this premise by having Link wake up in a Hyrule where a century has gone by. There aregreat isekai anime, likeRe:ZeroandThe Rising of the Shield Hero, that can serve as a basis for how Link struggles to come to terms with his new reality. For an adaptation, this could even serve as a literal link between him and the audience, as he learns the ropes of a new world with us.
‘The Legend of Zelda’ Feels More Coherent Within The Anime Space
“But there has already been aZeldaanimated series, and it didn’t work,” you may say. Yes, there was one in 1989, andit was terrible. It wasn’t an anime, though, but a regular animated series made by American producers and artists in a way that was familiar to them and the audiences of that time. Anime had nothing to do with that, and it’s a completely different medium, with its own beats, pacing, genres, and tone, andZeldahas drawn a lot from it, especially from 1998 on, whenOcarina of Timecame out and introduced 3D graphics in the franchise. It infusedZeldawith proper Japanese-style art and completely changed how we imagine it. It’s not difficult to findbeautiful artworkreimaginingZeldaas a Studio Ghibli anime, for example (and made by actual humans).
More than the episodic and serialized structure, however, anime is an entirely different language of storytelling, one that’s more suited to accommodate the idiosyncracies of theZeldagames. For example, their stories are all rooted in the idea of an ancient clash between forces of light and darkness, which resonates with the shōnen and isekai genres andfundamentally changes the pacing of a story, requiring it to be more contemplativeand, sometimes, even slow, so the characters can observe and appreciate the effects of their deeds in the world. Games likeBreath of the WildandTears of the Kingdomcan be beaten in speed runs, but lose their charm and most of their fun if you don’t stop and interact with the people of Hyrule. You lose the scale of how much you have impacted that world. Instead, it’s more fun tolive inHyrule. Something likeFrieren: Beyond Journey’s Endis aperfect basisfor aZeldastory; protagonist Frieren is usually stoic, but slowly changes her perspective on life as she witnesses firsthand how she made her world a better place.
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An Anime Would Allow For Link to Stay A Mostly-Silent Protagonist
This even fits with the fact that Link is a silent protagonist. He may speak in-world through the answers we choose when interacting with NPCs, but his not speaking has become part of his very nature, with franchise directorEiji Aonumaonce sayingthat the “air of proud independence he [Link] has because he doesn’t speak is a precious part of the individuality of his character.” WhenEchoes of Wisdomwas released, henearly madeLink speak, but ultimately decided against it: “Whatever we tried to make him say, it just didn’t feel right.” Link will definitely speak in the live-action movie and would have to even in an anime, butthe pacing and often contemplative nature of shōnen allows for him to do so more judiciously, without incurring in deeper changes of his character as live-action will certainly demand.
It’s particularly interesting howNintendo itself seems to also see anime as the best option to takeZeldainto other media. Most franchise titles also get a manga release in Japan, too, including the epicTwilight Princessadaptation byAkira Himekawain 2016. Manga are usually the basis for the best anime, and all those mentioned here were released as manga first. It’s no exaggeration to say that if a story works in manga, it will work as an anime; the structure is all but the same. Also, in 2014, Nintendopresented a trailerintroducing Palutena to theSuper Smash Bros.roster, featuring a gorgeous combat scene between Link and Pit that is basically the ultimate proof of concept about how well aZeldaanime would work.
Games Usually Thrive When Adapted Into Anime, Not Live-Action
Of course,The Legend of Zeldaisn’t the first game that will be translated into live-action, but, if it works, it would make it an exception to this trend.When it comes to adapting them to different media, what has continuously worked is turning games into anime. There are no shortage of examples, with the most recent beingCyberpunk: Edgerunners,Castlevania, andDevil May Cry. This last one is a particularly interesting case, because its chief producer,Adi Shankar, initially teased it onInstagramback in October 2018, saying he was “working with an iconic Japanese gaming company to adapt one of their iconic videogame series into a series.” Most people actually believed he would announce aZeldaanime, which speaks volumes of how thirsty fans are for it. As it turns out, itwas actuallyDevil May Cry— which is great, but is notZelda.
TurningZeldainto a live-action feature film is a huge risk. Nintendo often innovates with its games and platforms by taking huge risks, of course, but the movie industry has a completely different reality than gaming. When it broughtSuper Marioto the big screen, Nintendo opted for animation because it remembershow strangeand poorly received the otherSuper Mario Bros.movie was in 1993. The change in medium is always going to cause problems, so animation was a way to play it safe. WithZelda, it’s not that they should employ the same reasoning, but that there are already important ties between the games and the anime medium,not to mention a huge demand for it that’s already established. AZeldalive-action feels more like an experiment than an actual movie, in that sense, and the franchise deserves better than that.
