Well, here’s something I didn’t have on my 2023 bingo card, and that’s that Nintendo and Sony will work together to bring the live-action The Legend of Zelda movie to life. The production will be led by both Nintendo and Avid Productions Inc., with Wes Ball directing it. 

In a press statement issued by Nintendo, the gaming giant confirmed that they’ve started development on the live-action The Legend of Zelda movie. Co-financing will be done by both Sony and Nintendo, with Nintendo contributing to over 50% of the costs, while the theatrical distribution of the film will be handled by Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc.

“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.

By getting deeply involved in the movie production with the aim to put smiles on everyone’s faces through entertainment, Nintendo will continue its efforts to produce unique entertainment and deliver it to as many people as possible.”

Shigeru Miyamoto of Nintendo will serve as producer alongside Avi Arad, Chairman of Arad Productions Inc. The movie will be helmed by Wes Ball, who previously worked on the Maze Runner franchise and is currently directing Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, the fourth follow-up in the Planet of the Apes reboot. 

No other details were provided beyond that. 

This is going to be very interesting, as live-action video game films haven’t exactly all been major hits. Sonic The Hedgehog is the most recent that comes to the top of our heads, though Sony did do an Uncharted, which saw success at the box office. However, it was received very mixed among critics and fans. 

Nintendo, on the other hand, only recently jumped into making movies, with Super Mario Bros. receiving an animated film rather than a live-action one. Going live-action is a bold but risky move, even for a big franchise like Zelda. Can Nintendo really make a hit with this one? We’ll have to wait and see, though how long that’ll be isn’t known.