Summary

• Wes Ball offers a vague response regarding whether Link will talk in his live-action Legend of Zelda movie, teasing that the film will feature dialogue boxes for audiences.
• Players of the Legend of Zelda video games never hear Link talk, but he is not mute.
• The film is likely to feature a Link who talks given the challenges of a silent protagonist and the fact that Link has previously spoken in other non-video game adaptations of The Legend of Zelda.

The Legend of Zelda movie director addresses whether Link will talk in his adaptation. Based on the beloved Nintendo video game franchise, which follows adventurer Link on a variety of quests, Ball's The Legend of Zelda film was first confirmed in November 2023. The live-action adaptation features Derek Connolly (Jurassic World) on scripting duties, though many questions still remain about the film. One question, for example, is how the adaptation will handle a protagonist who doesn't speak in the games.

In a recent interview with live-action Legend of Zelda movie. The director's response, however, is vague, and it's hard to gleam a definitive "yes" or "no" from it. Check out Ball's full comment below:

"A or B or C. I'll just have it like the game – you just have little dialogue boxes pop up in the movie and you pick which one you want. Link does communicate to villagers all over through the game, you just don't hear his voice."

The Legend of Zelda will mark the second recent adaptation of a Nintendo video game after the box office success of The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

Why Link Is Likely To Speak In The Legend Of Zelda Movie

Link's Silence In The Games Explained

Though Ball's comment isn't confirmation one way or another, it's hard to imagine the Legend of Zelda featuring a protagonist who is entirely silent throughout the movie's runtime. Link, after all, is not a canonically mute character, and some of the Legend of Zelda games do feature, as Ball explains, Link dialogue boxes for the player to choose from. There's an important distinction, then, between Link speaking and players hearing Link speak.

Part of Link's silence is likely for gameplay reasons; many video games feature relatively flat playable characters so that players can more easily identify with and become them. What is effective in a video game, however, is not always effective in a feature film. Even if Link remains a strong and silent type throughout most of the runtime, the Legend of Zelda film seems likely to feature him speaking at some point to either communicate crucial information or establish a deeper connection between him and the audience.

Casting for the live-action Legend of Zelda movie has not yet begun and the film currently doesn't have an expected release date.

If Link talks in the movie, this would actually be in keeping with how the character has been portrayed outside the video game franchise. Link talks, for example, in some popular manga adaptations of the games, which speaks to the changes that are sometimes required when a property makes the jump to a new medium. Until a more concrete answer is provided, however, it still remains unclear whether Link will be speaking in the Legend of Zelda movie.

Source: ComicBook.com