One of the most impressive aspects ofThe Legend of Zeldais its varied presentation. On one hand, every game has shared gameplay elements, the same three main characters, and constant references to earlier titles. On the other hand, most entries have radically different tones, presentations, and goals. There’s a massive gulf betweenA Link Between WorldsandTears of the Kingdom. When Nintendo sets out to makeThe Legend of Zeldaa film franchise, they may have trouble narrowing down one work to adapt. They should avoid making that choice.
Director Wes Ball stepped up to handleThe Legend of Zeldaon the big screen. He recently unleashedKingdom of the Planet of the Apes, the fourth entry in the rebootedApesfranchise. Before that, he helmed theMaze Runnertrilogy, one of the better competitors in the young adult novel adaptation boom. As a filmmaker, he doesn’t have a ton of credits, but all of his outings are interesting. He’s a fascinating choice to direct one of the biggest video game adaptations of the era.
The Legend of Zeldais getting a live-action movie
The time has finally come to imagine the eventual realityofThe Legend of Zeldaon the big screen. Of course, it could still be years before it actually reaches a single multiplex. Everyone has a different image in their mind when they imagine the project. That push and pull will likely affect the creative team behind the film as well. The go-to source of inspiration will be Studio Ghibli films, as most fans consistently demand. It’s a massive, sweeping epic fantasy that also happens to take place in a world full of unusual characters. It’s hard to imagine a live-action blockbuster following much of Hayao Miyazaki’s storytelling structure advice, but it will certainly be interesting to see the creators try. One of the production’s most obvious questions involves the tone. Will it be charming and fun, likeWind Waker? Will it be tense and grim, likeTwilight Princess? Will it be a post-apocalyptic epic, likeBreath of the Wild? Or will they just save time and pick the most popular game for an easy profit? Perhaps the answer to all these questions is no.
The Legend of Zeldamovie shouldn’t focus on one game
There has almost certainly been a meeting about calling this filmThe Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time. No matter how many excellent entries come out of this franchise, the immortal legacy of the N64 classic will live on in the minds of millions as the defaultZelda. The aesthetics, characters, music, gameplay elements, and even the titular ocarina remain hugely iconic. It would be relatively easy to settle onOcarina of Timeas the film’s central source material. The other obvious answer would be picking the most recent entry and basing the film onBreath of the WildandTears of the Kingdom. While those seem like easy solutions to the source material problem, they also risk several potential problems.
Attempting todirectly adapt aZeldagame’s story with the runtime of a single film would be absurd. They would have to make massive cuts and leave a ton of the project behind. It would also guarantee a direct comparison point, highlighting all the inferior elements that didn’t make the leap properly. Selecting a single game also raises the specter of the franchise as a series. TheZeldafranchise sells its loose connection between entries well enough, but filmgoing crowds might find that idea a bit harder to follow. Leaning on the franchise as a whole as the film’s source material would create a more complete project. The filmmakers can take the elements that work, leave behind the ones that don’t, and create something that feels like a new Hyrule rather than a retread. They could even signpost it as yet anothernew point in the endless cycle. Luckily,The Legend of Zeldamovie has a great example to follow.
The Super Mario Bros. Movieis a great example
Sure,Mariodoesn’t have the same level of plot complexity fans expect fromZelda, but he does have countless distinct presentations over decades of stardom.The Super Mario Bros. Moviedidn’t restrain itself to any one adaptation. It contains elements, characters, and callbacks from nearly every era of the character’s long career. TheZeldamovie can take that idea even further. Rather than simply referencing every other version of Link, the film can establish itself as another new reality. The rules would go out the window, and the filmmakers would be free to use or discard whatever they wanted.
The Legend of Zeldais famously loose with its epic timeline. Three goddesses created the world, a demon messed it up, and the hero must claim their magical artifact to fix everything.The Legend of Zeldamoviecould take place at almost any point in the vague and questionable canon timeline. The project shouldn’t limit itself to the existing examples, no matter how popular they may be.The Legend of Zeldafilm can’t be a direct adaptation, but it can still give fans what they want. The beauty of Hyrule is that it’s rarely the same world twice.
