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Illumination is developing a ‘Legend of Zelda’ animated movie

With everything from Fallout to Tetris receiving a movie or TV series adaptation these days, it's time for one of Nintendo’s most famous IPs to be reinvigorated.


legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild
Do you trust Illumination to faithfully adaptate the story?

One of the fastest-growing animation studios in the world is taking on another daunting challenge. Kicking off with the Despicable Me franchise and then branching out to make the Minions movies, Illumination has been able to make a mark on the industry rather quickly.

The Grinch movie and the upcoming Super Mario Bros Movie are their latest ventures, but they are not stopping there.

Sources close to Giant Freakin Robot claim that teams at Illumination are working hard to develop an animated The Legend of Zelda movie. Fans are hoping the first cinematic adaptation of the Nintendo franchise stays faithful to its original source and makes it onto the big screen.

It’s surprising how long it has taken for this to happen, given how the video game franchise is perceived by the public. But this isn’t going to be the first attempt at an adaptation, with a 13-episode 1989 animated series already in place. The show was not well received, mostly due to the action being loosely based on the events of the first game.

legend of zelda gameplay
The franchise's most recent entry was released in 2017

People have been asking for a Legend Of Zelda movie for years, and it nearly came to fruition. Netflix started working on it, but when the news leaked to the public, Nintendo got cold feet and pulled the plug on the project. Now it appears that Nintendo has been pleased with Illumination’s work on the Super Mario Bros Movie, giving them the confidence to hand over the keys to their beloved IP. If Illumination nails it and creates a worthwhile adaptation, it could easily surpass the hefty goals the Super Mario Bros Movie is about to break.

teleport legen zelda
Illumination will have their hands full with this project

And expectations are naturally high, given the reception the latest addition to the franchise received. The 2017 open-world Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, has been endorsed as the best game ever made by multiple credible sources. Given the franchise’s popularity has exploded over recent years, an appearance on the big screen was all but inevitable.

Hopefully, Illumination and Nintendo take a more well-thought-out approach when choosing the voice actors for this adaptation. They are still catching slack for casting Chris Pratt in the voice role of Mario. And with how volatile the movie-making industry is and Nintendo’s willingness to back out of a deal, we can hope a change of plans is not in-store and the audience gets what it deserves.


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Scott Kostov

Scott Kostov // Articles: 129

A passion for writing and gaming has propelled Scott down the path of content creation. When he isn't scouring every known source on the internet for information, he's a track addict vibing to music in the countryside of sunny Macedonia. Link up with Scott on Twitter and Steam.
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