Summary

  • The success of the animated Super Mario Bros. Movie paved the way for Nintendo to explore other video game adaptations, including a live-action Legend of Zelda movie.
  • An animated Legend of Zelda movie could have been just as successful as Super Mario Bros., given the shared fantasy world and quest-based narrative.
  • Producing a live-action Legend of Zelda movie could appeal to the older demographic of the game. It also presents an opportunity for Nintendo to establish a successful live-action movie franchise.

The Legend of Zelda will diverge from the Mario movie's animated format to pursue a live-action take on the story. News that Nintendo will attempt a Legend of Zelda movie, inspired by its action-adventure video game franchise, follows a booming trend of video game adaptations that have shaken the entertainment industry, including Sonic the Hedgehog, The Last of Us, and Five Nights at Freddy's.

Given its theatrical success, bring a live-action Legend of Zelda movie to life is a testament to that. Although it may seem logical to piggyback off The Super Mario Bros. Movie's success as an animated feature, Nintendo hopes to carve The Legend of Zelda's path with a live-action installment instead.

Super Mario Bros. Suggests An Animated Legend Of Zelda Movie Wouldv'e Been Bigger Than Live-Action

Following in The Super Mario Bros. Movie's footsteps not only seems more logical but conducive to raking in an enormous box office haul. The Super Mario Bros. Movie was a significant achievement for Nintendo. It hit a staggering $1.36 billion at the box office (via the highest-grossing movie based on a video game. It can be assumed that an animated Legend of Zelda movie almost certainly would have worked had Nintendo aimed to recapture the magic of The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

The Legend of Zelda and Super Mario Bros. video games have enough in common to prove how easily Nintendo could have recreated a successful animated hit. Both come from franchises rooted in fantastical worlds filled with imaginative creatures and lead characters set on grand quests. Even still, Nintendo aims to give the whimsical world of The Legend of Zelda a shot on the big screen in a live-action format.

Legend Of Zelda's Audience Is More Adult Than Mario's, Which Could Explain The Live-Action Movie

The Legend of Zelda's Link with a Skyview Tower from Tears of the Kingdom in the background.

Nintendo's decision to produce The Legend of Zelda in live-action may be a calculated response to the video game's demographic, which tends to skew older than Mario's. In Mario's entire video game catalog, only Super Mario Odyssey is rated E-10, while every other entry in the franchise is E-rated. Comparatively, The Legend of Zelda's catalog is more susceptible to ratings that exceed E for everyone, which s for an increase in adult themes, violence, and strong language and restricts a lot of children from Zelda's core demographic.

Six of the 19 games in The Legend of Zelda's main series catalog are rated E-10 and up.

While animation certainly isn't only for children, Nintendo could be producing its Zelda movie to appeal to the franchise's established older audience. Only a few details have been released pertaining to the live-action The Legend of Zelda, but Nintendo's confirmation that direction will fall under filmmaker Wes Ball — who's known for the PG-13 Maze Runner franchise and the forthcoming addition to the violent, action-packed Planet of the Apes franchise — suggests that the Zelda movie may be PG-13 rather than PG. Since Zelda is angled towards adults more than Mario, a live-action format actually wouldn't be the worst way for Nintendo to go.

Legend Of Zelda Is One Of Nintendo's Best Chances At A Live-Action Movie Franchise

Link looks angry in Legend of Zelda game

Compared to all the other Nintendo-owned properties, The Legend of Zelda could be the video game giant's best chance at a major, live-action movie franchise. Nintendo is steeped with franchises better suited to animation, as the vivid and unreal worlds of Kirby, Animal Crossing, Pikmin, Star Fox, and more would be difficult to translate to live-action. On the whole, The Legend of Zelda would be the least problematic to render in real life.

With that being said, Legend of Zelda will have problems to overcome, including struggles to provide truly convincing live-action interpretations of its most fantastical details. However, video game adaptations that more closely resemble reality, like HBO's The Last of Us, Universal's Five Nights at Freddy's, and even The Pokémon Company's Detective Pikachu, have since proven how far a little CGI, makeup, and costuming can go to depict fantastically convincing moments in live-action. If Nintendo can nail the balance of what's real and what's outlandish in the first movie, then The Legend of Zelda will burgeon into Nintendo's best live-action franchise.

Source: Box Office Mojo