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The Legend of Zelda movie is barreling ahead with production, which means fans have been waiting for what feels like ages to find out who will be cast in the lead roles of Link and Princess Zelda. If you’re one to keep a regular eye on your Nintendo Today! app, you might have noticed that the widget prominently displayed the Triforce very early this morning. A quick click revealed that Nintendo and Arad Productions will release the film on May 7, 2027 and that the two actors have finally been cast—they are none other than:
Benjamin Evan Ainsworth (The Haunting of Bly Manor and the voice of Pinocchio 2022) as Link, and
Bo Bragason (Censor and The Radleys) as Zelda.
Shigeru Miyamoto even took to the Japanese Nintendo X account to reveal the news:
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. (1/2) pic.twitter.com/KA5XW3lwul
— 任天堂株式会社 (@Nintendo) July 16, 2025
Overall, the casting seems to be doing its best to be faithful to the look of the characters for nearly 40 years. The question now will be how Nintendo chooses to represent Ganondorf in the film. Ever since the release of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, one could extrapolate that Ganondorf and the Gerudo have analogues in real world Middle Eastern people, perhaps most specifically because of the desert region they live in, the crescent moon and star symbol that represented the Gerudo, and the chanting in the Fire Temple. Heck, back in the day Nintendo censored the original Gerudo symbol and removed the chanting from the Fire Temple to avoid offending anyone.
This is just one interpretation, of course. And given most Middle Eastern people don’t have blazing red hair like the Gerudo nor magical abilities, it’s safe to say that there’s wiggle room for how the Gerudo are brought to the silver screen. However, it would be fun to see Nintendo embrace this aspect of the characters and give fans a casting that hews closer to the games and how they’ve been depicted for decades. We’ll just have to wait and see, but in the meantime why not give us your casting ideas down in the comments and on social media?
Source: Nintendo Today! App + Shigeru Miyamoto X Account
