The Legend of Zelda live-action movie has officially found its Link and Zelda. In a shocking move, Nintendo and Sony chose to go with relatively unknown actors for their stars, but that’s something that will likely help the movie in the long run. The companies announced that Benjamin Evan Ainsworth and Bo Bragason have been cast as the iconic duo, setting the stage for the upcoming movie.
Casting little-known actors for the Zelda movie allows the IP to shine on its own
The decision to cast a pair of relatively unknown actors in the roles of Link and Zelda is something that might go down as controversial at first, but really shouldn’t be. Ainsworth (who will play Link) is best known for voicing Pinocchio in the recent live-action film from Robert Zemeckis. Bragason (Zelda) had her breakout role in the BBC One series Three Girls.
Outside of that, the pair have appeared in various projects, but have not had any major starring roles. This allows fans to come into the movie without any preconceived notions as they would if a big star were in it. Instead, they can focus more on the movie and its adaptation of the world of The Legend of Zelda.
This is something Nintendo also clearly learned from its past forays into movies, including its most recent video game adaptation.
Nintendo’s classics don’t need the baggage of big-name actors
Nintendo’s last film adaptation, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, had a star-studded cast that included Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Day, Jack Black, Keegan-Michael Key, Seth Rogen, Fred Armisen, and more.
However, from the very start, fans were critical of what the movie was going to be like due to the high-profile names attached. The inclusion of Pratt and the casting of Jack Black as Bowser, specifically, led many to think the film would be a critical disaster before it was even released. While the film was still a massive success, it seems like Nintendo has decided to go a different route here, and may have realized it doesn’t need big names for every project.
The world of The Legend of Zelda is an iconic one, even for people who might know every single thing about the video game. Its fantasy setting is also one that can draw in more audiences than something like the world of Super Mario. Instead of worrying about big names in starring roles, Nintendo and Sony can simply focus on making the best movie they possibly can.
