Super Mario Bros. Movie exec tries to calm Legend of Zelda film speculation

The film studio behind the Super Mario Bros. Movie has moved to shut down reports it is making a Legend of Zelda film next.

Earlier this month, it was reported that animation studio Illumination was on the cusp of finalising a "big deal" with Nintendo to adapt its Legend of Zelda series. However, Illumination's CEO has now spoken out to damp down fan expectation.

Speaking to The Wrap, Chris Meledandri - who founded Illumination back in 2007 - said he didn't know where this Legend of Zelda report came from.

"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 shared with the publication.

"But in terms of the specifics, that was just something that I've been hearing lots of reports. This is just about what's next between Nintendo and Illumination."

Illumination's Benjamin Renner, who is currently directing the studio's upcoming film Migration, added "I see one report every week", noting that this week's report was "Zelda".

Last month, Eiji Aonuma and Hidemaro Fujibayashi - The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom's producer and director respectively - confirmed that they would be "interested" in the idea of Legend of Zelda movie adaptation.

However, at this time, Aonuma added the caveat: "It's not just me being interested in something that makes things happen, unfortunately."

Back in 2021, it was reported that a Netflix deal to make a live-action The Legend of Zelda TV series was scrapped by Nintendo after word of the project was leaked.