The Super Mario Bros. Movie had grossed over a billion dollars, and fans are now wondering if Nintendo is interested in adapting more IP in the future.
Since The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom just launched, Polygon asked producer Eiji Aonuma what his thoughts on a Zelda movie would be, to which he replied, “I have to say, I am interested. For sure. But it’s not just me being interested in something that makes things happen, unfortunately.” Director Hidemaro Fujibayashi also added, “Maybe the voice of the fans is what’s important here.”
Unlike Super Mario which doesn’t really have an extensive plot to follow, The Legend of Zelda has always been more of a traditional fantasy story. Interestingly though, all the games don’t tell one cohesive canon, but rather reimagine the story of Link, Zelda, and Ganon, with a whole new version of Hyrule.
Should Nintendo tackle a movie, I think they would have to release a serious fantasy film with solid rules and lore. The good news is, since Zelda is all about reinventing itself with every entry, the movie could possibly start its own new canon and just draw inspiration from multiple games as they push forward.
Though Super Mario did make a lot of money, I did think that the story could have used a bit more brushing up on Illumination’s part. Should they take on Zelda, maybe the studio should pick an animation house that has delivered on fantasy before; like Dreamworks Animation and they’re How to Train Your Dragon series.
No Zelda movie has been announced, but you can check out The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom now available for the Nintendo Switch.
