‘The Legend Of Zelda’ movie is not in development, according to Illumination CEO

Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri has denied that a Legend Of Zelda movie is currently in development.

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Following the box office success of The Super Mario Bros. Movie, rumours had been circulating about the possibility of a Zelda film adaptation, with some going as far to claim that Universal was close to agreeing a deal with Nintendo to develop the film with the creators of Minions.

However, Meledandri has now dismissed those rumours, clarifying that no such deal is in place.

“I don’t know where that came from,” Meledandri told The Wrap. “I mean I can understand how people would surmise all sorts of things because obviously, we’ve had a great experience working together.

“My relationship with Nintendo now includes being on their board of directors, so I understand how people can surmise these things,” he added.

“But in terms of the specifics, that was just something that I’ve been hearing lots of rumours. This is just about what’s next between Nintendo and Illumination.”

Meledandri did not rule out the possibility of a film adaptation altogether, and given the success of the Super Mario Bros. Movie, it’s likely that the idea is currently considered.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie surpassed $1billion (£800million) at the global box office, making it the highest-grossing video game adaptation of all time. It also had the biggest opening weekend ever for a film based on a video game, and at the time of writing, it is highest grossing film of 2023.

Despite being well-received by audiences, critics were generally divided over the film.

In a two-star review, NME wrote: “It’s faithful enough to tempt existing fans to the cinema, but too perfunctory to be pored over. Is the Mario movie super? To paraphrase one of the title character’s catchphrases, it’s-a mediocre.”