A live-action The Legend of Zelda movie has been a long time in the making. It has been a number one request from fans for years. We learned about the movie was actually happening all the way back in 2023. And, of course, the number one question that followed the announcement was, “Who would play Link and Zelda in the live-action movie?” But we received no word about casting, leaving plenty of room for speculation… Until now. The live-action The Legend of Zelda movie has finally cast its Link and Zelda. Interestingly enough, despite many high-profile names being tossed around, the live-action Zelda movie has gone with two relatively unknown actors. Let’s take a look at who has been cast.
Although his name isn’t in the title, our hero Link is an important character. In the live-action The Legend of Zelda movie, Link will be played by Benjamin Evan Ainsworth. Benjamin Evan Ainsworth might be best known to Nerdist readers as the creepy kid from Mike Flanagan’s Netflix show, The Haunting of Bly Manor. Now, he’ll be much less eerie and much more epic as he takes on maybe the most iconic video game leading man ever, Link. We can see the vision in this The Legend of Zelda live-action movie casting choice.
The Legend of Zelda fans REALLY hoped that Hunter Schafer would play Princess Zelda in the live-action The Legend of Zelda movie. And we must admit, casting Hunter Schafer would have been a really perfect decision. Schafer is super talented, and we’d have loved to see a transgender person cast in such a high-profile role. But, alas, it was not to be. The Legend of Zelda has instead cast Bo Bragason as its live-action Princess Zelda. You might know Bragason from Disney+’s Renegade Nell, and we’re excited to see what she can do.
The film is scheduled to be released in theaters on May 7, 2027. Thank you for your patience. (2/2)
— 任天堂株式会社 (@Nintendo) July 16, 2025
Nintendo Head Shigeru Miyamoto shared some words of praise for the this duo on social media. He noted, “This is Miyamoto. I am pleased to announce that for the live-action film of The Legend of Zelda, Zelda will be played by Bo Bragason-san, and Link by Benjamin Evan Ainsworth-san. I am very much looking forward to seeing both of them on the big screen. The film is scheduled to be released in theaters on May 7, 2027. Thank you for your patience.”
Well, if this The Legend of Zelda live-action movie casting decision is good enough for Shigeru Miyamoto, we suppose it’s good enough for us.
So far, we know that The Legend of Zelda will release on May 7, 2027. It will be directed by Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes‘ Wes Ball. We don’t know much about the plot of The Legend of Zelda yet, but we assume it will follow the story of Link and Zelda as they battle evils across the kingdom.
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