Remember back in 2015 when we started hearing those rumors that Netflix and Nintendo were developing a Legend of Zelda series? It was described it as “Game of Thrones for a family audience,” and then… Nintendo would eventually say that they weren’t doing the series and that seemed to be the end of it. Our nerdy heads collectively sunk and we continued on. It was just another rumor giving us all false hope of a live-action series set in Hyrule. After a recent report from Eurogamer though, it would seem there may have been more truth to the rumors than we thought.
Eurogamer spoke with US comedian and TV personality Adam Conover (Adam Ruins Everything) who was apparently working with Netflix on a claymation Star Fox project at the time. According to Conover, Nintendo cancelled an entire proposed slate of adaptations (whatever they were) after someone at Netflix leaked the news of the Legend of Zelda series.
“…I heard from my boss we weren’t doing our Star Fox anymore. I was like, ‘what happened?’ He was like, ‘someone at Netflix leaked the Legend of Zelda thing.’ They weren’t supposed to talk about it, Nintendo freaked out… and they pulled the plug on everything…” This truly saddens me. Not only did we lose out on a possible Legend of Zelda series, but now I learn that we missed out on an Adam Conover claymation Star Fox too!? Who is responsible for this?!
While there may not be a Legend of Zelda or a Star Fox series coming to Netflix anytime soon, there is still some cause for joy. The streamer is fast becoming the home of adaptations for other games like Castlevania, Cyberpunk2077, a coming anime series for Tomb Raider, and many more. Nintendo is still holding its cards close to its chest about their upcoming Super Mario Bros. animated film with Illumination Entertainment, (Despicable Me/Rio) and if that goes well there’s no reason to think we won’t see other animated adaptations. On top of that, we just got Monster Hunter, we’re set to see a new Mortal Kombat movie in just a few short months in theaters and on HBOMax, and Sony’s Uncharted is finally underway after a long and rocky pre-production period.
Though I lament the loss of a Legend of Zelda series, its clear there is hope on the horizon and videogame fans will have plenty of reasons to be excited about going to the movies (or the couch) for the foreseeable future.
Source: IGN
I’ve worked my whole life to become a comic book illustrator, writer, and stand-up comedian. Batman and Captain Benjamin Sisko helped put a good head on my shoulders. I spent most of my childhood saving Hyrule and the Mushroom Kingdom and seeing the Justice League save all of creation time and time again. I live in Johnson City, TN with my wife Kary and daughter Laila enjoying the beautiful mountain scenery and occasional show. Three puppies round out the family and take up the rest of the time that isn’t spent debating which Wes Anderson or Studio Ghibli movie to watch. I spend an inordinate amount of time binge watching SVU, Futurama, and Letterkenny, and when I’m not watching I’m listening to “My Brother, My Brother, and Me” or playing the occasional game of D&D. If there’s a nerdy endeavor out there, I’ve probably at least tried it.
