Should The Legend Of Zelda Movie Have An Original Story?

Highlights

Fans speculate about the live-action Legend of Zelda movie, eagerly waiting for details on the story, casting, and whether Link will finally speak.
Nintendo has many iconic stories to choose from in the Legend of Zelda series, but an original story may work better for a full-length movie.
A condensed, accessible movie with a classic hero’s journey and beloved characters could be the best option for a successful Legend of Zelda film.

Fans are speculating about the announced live-action Legend Of Zelda movie, and will continue until an announcement with actual details is made. Some of the key figures behind the film may be announced, but outside of that, no one knows whether Link will finally talk in a big way, or even what the film will be about. Casting might be a massive debate, but whether the movie should aspire to adapt a game story or tell an original one is just as big of a debate.

With dozens of entries in the Legend Of Zelda series to pull from, it’s not like Nintendo is hurting when it comes to potential stories to tell. Most of the games in the series are considered all-time classics, from the gameplay to the story. Some are among the most legendary video game stories of all time. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll adapt well to a full-length movie, meaning an original story might be the best option.

Why The Legend Of Zelda Movie Should Have An Original Story

Realistically, a game filled with action, puzzles, and adventure that ends up being dozens of hours long isn’t the best fit for a two-hour film. With a different medium comes a chance to tell a different kind of story. While the Legend Of Zelda movie should feature key aspects and tropes from the games, there is nothing wrong with standing out. A lot of time is dedicated to lore throughout the Zelda games, and while that is important for movie fans to understand, it is less important than connecting with Link, Zelda, and Ganon as characters.

Fans may be hoping for a massive epic, and they may very well get that, but it is much likely that the movie will strive to tell a complete story in a single attempt. Link will set out on his journey, claim the master sword, and save the land of Hyrule by defeating Ganon all before the close of the movie. Not many games that can be adapted that would allow for a plot that needs to play out so quickly. It’s important to keep in mind that Nintendo wants the movie to be accessible, even stating so in their own news release announcing the film:

By producing visual contents of Nintendo IP by itself, Nintendo is creating new opportunities to have people from around the world to access the world of entertainment which Nintendo has built, through different means apart from its dedicated game consoles.

If Nintendo is true to its word, it’s not hard to assume that an original, condensed movie is what will be coming. The movie shouldn’t be bogged down with overly complicated timelines, debated geography, and different iterations of heroes. A simple story about a boy rising up to bravely save the land in the face of great evil is a classic tale. That might be all this movie needs, especially if Link has a great companion, cool locations to visit, and plenty of iconic music from the series to adventure to.

Why The Legend Of Zelda Movie Should Not Have An Original Story

Legend Of Zelda Games	Initial Release Date	Release Console
Tears Of The Kingdom	May 12, 2023	Switch
Breath Of The Wild	March 3, 2017	Wii U, Switch
Skyward Sword	November 18, 2011	Wii
Twilight Princess	November 19, 2006	Gamecube, Wii
Wind Waker	December 13, 2002	Gamecube
Majora’s Mask	April 27, 2000	Nintendo 64
Ocarina Of Time	November 21, 1998	Nintendo 64

There are so many excellent, difficult, and familiar stories for Nintendo to tell with Link, Zelda, and Ganon. Fans have been asking for adaptations for so long that it might be a missed opportunity not to use a game’s story. It may be a bit more of a long shot, but it’s not hard to see Nintendo seeing the success of the Mario movie and realizing fans have been calling for a Zelda movie for just as long. This might clue the company into the fact that fans are willing to see a larger story, so long as the quality is there. This means that Nintendo has the potential to tell a massive three-part epic with their Zelda movies.

An announcement that the live-action Zelda movie will be retelling the story of one of a handful of the mainline games is likely to be met with a sea of blown minds. There is nostalgia loaded into most of the options from the series. Even if Nintendo went for Breath Of The Wild or Tears Of The Kingdom, those games are both recent and successful enough that an adaptation would have people lined up for tickets. Going this route would allow the movie to capitalize on the nostalgia of those who grew up with a Zelda game of their choosing. However, it is worth acknowledging that making a choice for a single movie may disappoint fans who feel a different game story would have been a better choice.

Taking Twilight Princess as an example, a film trilogy could work perfectly. The first film took the time to build Link’s relationship with Ordon Village, introduce the Twilight, blaze through the Twilight and first three dungeons in a creative way, and take Link all the way to Zelda sacrificing herself to save Midna. Fans would have a lot to love. The second film could then tackle Ganondorf’s backstory, Link’s adventure to get the Master Sword, and journey through the next few condensed dungeons. It could potentially end in a climactic fight with an enemy haunting him throughout the movie, The Hero’s Shade. From there, the final film is all about Midna and Zant, and Link and Ganondorf. The pieces are all there, it just requires someone creative enough to step in to make something truly worthy of the Legend Of Zelda series.

Which Is The Best Option?

While strong arguments can be made both ways, the best route will probably be a narrative that is familiar to one or more of the games, while still telling a truly original story. It just isn’t realistic to assume Nintendo would be willing to risk investing in three films after a single success, especially with their previous track record with film and TV.

At the same time, telling an original story would put the movie in line with Nintendo’s own statement on the movie, allowing for the widest audience possible to take interest in the film. With an original story, the team would be able to pick and choose which aspects from the series make appearances, both as major story moments and as smaller Easter eggs.

Picking a single game like Wind Waker for a movie adaptation risks alienating fans. Then, not being true enough to that game further risks alienation. Finally, if the movie isn’t incredible or received well, that just further hurts the legacy of whatever game it is adapting. Essentially, choosing to adapt one of the games may come with an initial boom in word of mouth, but a Zelda movie is bound to get that anyway whenever a trailer drops. This makes the many risks involved with adapting an existing story too heavy to want to take on. The right people could likely make either storytelling option work. With what little information is available thus far, it’s probably safe to say that the live-action Legend Of Zelda movie needs an original story.