Nintendo’s Zelda movie has cast its Link and Princess Zelda

Nintendo fans sit up — the search for the heroic leads of The Legend of Zelda movie has ended, and we now know who will be taking on the roles of Link and Princess Zelda. And it’s two British actors set to head up the film.

Bo Bragason will be playing Zelda, while Benjamin Evan Ainsworth will don the green tunic as Link. Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto, creator of the franchise, broke the news via a post on the Nintendo X.com account, with a picture appearing to show the pair in costume:

“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,” writes Miyamoto. “I am very much looking forward to seeing both of them on the big screen.”

Unknown heroes

Taking a look at the pair’s IMDB credits, it appears that Nintendo and Sony have opted to cast two relative unknowns in the lead roles.

Bragason has been seen in the BBC One shows Three Girls and The Jetty, and made an appearance in Disney Renegade Nell on the Disney+ streaming service, as well as tongue-in-cheek vampire film The Radleys.

Ainsworth has his fair share of fantasy credits, voicing Pinocchio in Robert Zemeckis’ live-action Pinocchio and as Miles in Netflix’s The Haunting of Bly Manor. A spot in Netflix’s The Sandman adaptation is his other most notable credit.

Fan casting had cried out for Euphoria’s Hunter Schafer in the title role of Zelda, but that’s clearly not come to pass.

The Legend of Zelda movie is scheduled to be released on May 7th, 2027 — slightly later than the original March 2027 date first penned in. It’ll be directed by Wes Ball, who did a bang up job with The Maze Runner franchise and the most recent talking-apes film, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.

What’s this tell us about the Zelda film?

Casting two little-known actors in the title roles is a wise decision by Nintendo — particularly when it comes to casting Link. In the games, he’s essentially mute, emoting his intentions rather than ever having a speaking role, so that the player can project their own self onto the character. Considering there was considerable backlash against Chris Pratt voicing Mario in Nintendo’s other big-screen franchise, this should leave enough room for fans — and the director’s — imagination to lead the direction of the role, rather than any preconceived ideas about the actor in question.

It’s worth noting that the two actors are relatively young, or at least look so — Bo Bragason is in her early twenties, while Benjamin Evan Ainsworth is 16. That suggests Nintendo may be looking to adapt some of the earlier games in the series, such as Ocarina of Time, Wind Waker, or the NES original title, rather than more recent entries such as Breath of the Wild or Tears of The Kingdom, where the characters appear to be slightly older.

But of course, any adaptation is likely to tell its own story (with the exception of the most recent open world adventures, each Zelda story is self-contained, with recurring themes and characters tying the franchise together), and Wes Ball is likely to do his own thing here too.

It’s worth noting though that (decades old spoiler alert) Ocarina of Time was a game of two halves — one side letting you play as an adolescent Link, the other as a grown-up Link. With Hollywood’s penchant for sequels, I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a plan eventually for a grown-link sequel somewhere down the line…

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