The Legend of Zelda is primarily a video game franchise, both one of the most acclaimed and one of the longest running. It’s a bit of a surprise that it won’t be until 2027 that it is adapted into a movie, but that’s when Nintendo and Sony are going to partner up to bring Link, Zelda, and others to the big screen for the first time. Ahead of that, and after very little information at all since the movie’s announcement, the film just got a huge update.
The Legend of Zelda Officially Begins Filming
If there was any fear that The Legend of Zelda might end up being stuck in development hell or be cancelled, you can rest assured. The movie has officially begun filming. According to a report from IGN, a production listing changed to reflect that the movie is “in production” now.
That is a big change from “pre-production.” That essentially means the script has been fully written, and everyone is on board, from cast to crew. It was announced several years ago and spent all that time in pre-production, but things are finally happening now.
According to the listing, the filming is taking place in Wellington, New Zealand, and many are hopeful that this idyllic countryside will work wonders with the fantasy realm that The Legend of Zelda takes place in. For reference, The Lord of the Rings trilogy was filmed in Wellington, too, so we can expect similar backdrops for the upcoming Nintendo adaptation.
Information remains scarce, though. We know very little about the cast and crew other than:
- Benjamin Evan Ainsworth as Link
- Bo Bragasan as Zelda
- Wes Ball is directing
- Derek Connelly and T.S. Nowlin are writing
- Avi Arad, Shigeru Miyamoto, and Joe Hartwick Jr. are producing
- Dan Zimmerman is editing
- Dylan Jury and Debra Zane are handling all casting
We still don’t know the rest of the cast, though with filming underway, we can expect to learn more about who will be joining Bragasan and Ainsworth in the cast. Ball is known for his Maze Runner movies, and Connelly wrote Detective Pikachu and Kong: Skull Island.
The film’s synopsis reads, “The Legend of Zelda follows Link, a young warrior destined to protect the magical kingdom of Hyrule from the forces of darkness. The land is under threat from Ganon, a ruthless warlord who seeks the Triforce — an ancient relic said to grant limitless power. To stop him, Link must embark on a perilous journey, battling monstrous creatures, exploring treacherous dungeons, and solving intricate puzzles to uncover sacred artifacts that can aid him in his quest.”
Unfortunately, that doesn’t add a whole lot to the information base. This could very well serve as a general synopsis for the video game series, and most individual games adhere to the facts presented above. They’re almost all about Link protecting Hyrule from Ganon, who is looking for the Triforce. It’s no surprise that the movie is about that, but it doesn’t actually confirm anything.
“I want to fulfill people’s greatest desires,” Ball said in a previous interview. “I know it’s important, this franchise, to people, and I want it to be a serious movie. A real movie that can give people an escape… [It has] to feel like something real. Something serious and cool but fun and whimsical.” Once filming concludes, which is expected to happen in Spring 2026, we will likely get a trailer either confirming or denying what Ball set out to do.
Conclusion
The Legend of Zelda has already been delayed once, safely avoiding a dangerous weekend matchup with Sonic the Hedgehog 4. Now that filming is officially underway, it would be a surprise to see another delay, so we are now officially counting down the days until May 7, 2027.
