After a weekend of leaks forced their hand, Nintendo decided to get ahead of the story and drop the official first look at their upcoming The Legend of Zelda live-action film. And honestly? The fans who’ve been camping out on social media weren’t wrong—Link and Zelda look pretty much spot-on.
The production kicked off filming recently in Wellington, New Zealand (yes, the same place where Middle-earth came to life), and eagle-eyed fans managed to snap photos and videos of actors Benjamin Evan Ainsworth and Bo Bragason suited up as the iconic duo. Nintendo’s response? “Well, since you’ve already seen them, here are the official shots.”
The legendary hero gets his green tunic
Through their Nintendo Today! app, the company shared three images this morning that give us a proper look at how these characters are translating from pixels to flesh and blood. Benjamin Evan Ainsworth is bringing Link to life, and the British actor seems like a natural fit for the role.
If his name sounds vaguely familiar, you might remember him from The Haunting of Bly Manor, where he played Miles Wingrave—a performance that basically put him on Hollywood’s radar. Since then, he’s built up a solid resume with Flora & Ulysses, Disney’s live-action Pinocchio, and Son of a Critch. His age, talent, and look apparently checked all of Nintendo’s boxes, because there he is in the official images: blonde hair dyed just right, rocking that classic green tunic every gamer recognizes instantly.
Zelda steps into the spotlight
Bo Bragason, who’s taking on Princess Zelda, comes from a theater background that gave her some serious acting chops before she transitioned to screen work. Her TV credits include Three Girls, Creeped Out, Renegade Nell, and The Jetty. She’s also got experience with motion-capture projects, which could come in handy depending on what kind of magical effects this movie throws at us.
In the official images, Bragason looks like she walked straight out of a fan’s dream casting board. She’s wearing a blue outfit, carrying a bow and quiver full of arrows—basically the Zelda that players have been imagining for decades. Both actors are decked out with accessories that feel pulled directly from the games, which is exactly the kind of attention to detail fans were hoping for.
First official look at the live-action ‘LEGEND OF ZELDA’ movie
Shigeru Miyamoto says:
This is Miyamoto. Filming is underway for the live-action film of The Legend of Zelda in a lush, natural setting, with Bo Bragason-san who will play Zelda and Benjamin Evan Ainsworth-san who… pic.twitter.com/9WGA1PUioj
— Geek Realm Hub (@geekrealmhub) November 17, 2025
Miyamoto confirms everything’s on track
Nintendo didn’t just drop the images and run. They included a message from Shigeru Miyamoto himself—the legendary Nintendo creative who’s serving as executive producer alongside Avi Arad (the guy who brought Uncharted to theaters).
Miyamoto confirmed that filming is underway in “a lush natural environment,” which tracks with what those leaked photos showed. More importantly, he reassured everyone that the project is still on schedule for its May 7, 2027 release date.
“This is Miyamoto. Filming is underway for the live-action film of The Legend of Zelda in a lush, natural setting, with Bo Bragason-san who will play Zelda and Benjamin Evan Ainsworth-san who will play Link. Filming is on track for the film’s release on May 7, 2027. It will take a while until the release, so we would be grateful if you would wait patiently and look forward to it.”
So there you have it—two more years of waiting, but at least now we know what we’re waiting for. And based on these first images, it’s looking pretty promising.