Tag: wes ball

The Legend of Zelda Live-Action Movie Is in Development, Nintendo Confirms

The Legend of Zelda is getting a live-action adaptation. After years of rumours, Nintendo has finally confirmed that it’s working on a movie set in the enchanted lands of Hyrule, co-produced by the gaming giant and Avi Arad, who’s behind the recent Spider-Man spin-off films. Wes Ball — best known for the Maze Runner trilogy — is attached to direct, which isn’t being received well by fans of the franchise. Of course, Zelda creator Shigeru Miyamoto is deeply involved in the project in a producer capacity, just like he was for The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

“This is Miyamoto. I have been working on the live-action film of The Legend of Zelda for many years now with Avi Arad-san, who has produced many mega-hit films,” Miyamoto said in the announcement tweet. “It will take time until its completion, but I hope you look forward to seeing it.”

Nintendo confirmed earlier this year, its plans to turn the gaming company into an entertainment empire by slowly transitioning into theme parks and movies. They’ve both succeeded gracefully, with Illumination-produced The Super Mario Bros. Movie grossing $1.36 billion (about Rs. 11,324 crore), placed second among the biggest films this year. That’s a huge feat, considering the film ruffled fans’ feathers before release for casting Chris Pratt (Guardians of the Galaxy) as the titular plumber Mario.

With The Legend of Zelda being a live-action production, Nintendo is partnering with Sony Pictures Entertainment to helm the film, with the former putting forward more than 50 percent of the financing. Currently, there’s no logline for the film but we can assume it follows the young warrior Link’s perilous adventures, as he’s tasked with saving the kingdom of Hyrule and its princess Zelda by defeating the evil King Ganon. The decades-spanning game series is loaded with legacy dungeons and puzzles to solve, but in recent years, veered into the open-world territory, allowing players to explore the entire realm at their own pace. 2018’s The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was the first to do it, and it was later expanded in Tears of the Kingdom with special abilities that let you build machines and a whole Sky Island map section to explore. They’re both considered as some of the best video games ever made.

Director Ball is also slated to helm Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, slated for release on May 24, 2024, in which a feral young woman (Freya Allan) and an ape Cornelius (Owen Teague) head out on a spiritual journey to seek freedom from the rule of chimpanzee king Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand) — who took on the mantle following Caesar’s death and perverted his teachings. While fans are still wishing for the Zelda movie to be an animated take, this must mean a big deal to Ball, who back in 2010 expressed interest in seeing a Zelda movie. At the time, he also hoped for it to be a mocap film akin to James Cameron’s Avatar. Back in 2015, even Netflix tried to develop an animated series based on Zelda, though it never came to fruition.

Currently, The Legend of Zelda live-action movie does not have a release window.

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Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Casts Jessica Jones’ Eka Darville, Locke & Key’s Kevin Durand: Report

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes has reportedly cast Eka Darville and Kevin Durand, in undisclosed roles. 20th Century Studios announced the film last week, with a teaser image and a 2024 release window. Wes Ball — regarded for his work in the Maze Runner films — is attached to direct, from a script penned by a team of four. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes serves as the fourth entry in the reboot franchise, and is set years after the events of director Matt Reeves’ War for the Planet of the Apes.

The 2017 film served as a fitting end to ape Caesar’s (Andy Serkis) journey, as he passed away looking onto the horizon — ensuring a safer future for his son and his army. During his final moments, Maurice (Karin Konoval), the noble Orangutan, promised him that the child will know of Caesar’s legacy. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes begins production this month, so it’s super early to tell if this new chapter follows the offspring’s story. But what we know for sure, is that it’s a direct sequel, “picking up many years after” Caesar’s death.

Both Darville and Durand join the already confirmed cast, including Owen Teague (It), Peter Macon (Family Guy), and Freya Allan — best known for playing Ciri in Netflix’s The Witcher series.

Darville was also once part of the Netflix family, via Marvel’s Jessica Jones, before it officially switched homes to Disney+. Meanwhile, horror fans will recognise Durand as Frederick Gideon, the minor antagonist from Locke & Key. While there are no details on the former’s role in the film, Deadline’s unconfirmed sources claim that Durand will be playing a villainous ape.

Originally, Reeves (The Batman) expressed interest in making more Apes movies, with Steve Zahn’s (The White Lotus) Bad Ape, and expanding the story. However, by late 2019, he was engaged with the DC Comics film, putting Ball in control of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. As for the writing team, we’ve got Josh Friedman (Terminator: Dark Fate), Rick Jaffa (Mulan), Amanda Silver (Jurassic World), and Patrick Aison (Prey).

The Planet of the Apes film franchise dates back to 1968, with Rod Serling’s script introducing themes of the Cold War and a twist ending, which revealed planet Earth to be a nuclear wasteland. The year 2001 saw a Tim Burton remake, which never got a sequel, as the director found 20th Century Fox’s production schedule quite exhausting. The studio later revisited the franchise through Rupert Wyatt’s 2011 reboot, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, which grossed $481.8 million (about Rs. 3,929 crore) globally.

Director Reeves came on board to direct the follow-ups — Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014) and War for the Planet of the Apes. The films made $708.8 million (about Rs. 5,778 crore) and $490.7 million (about Rs. 4,000 crore), respectively, at the worldwide box office. In our review of the third chapter, we called the Planet of the Apes reboot trilogy the best trilogy of the 2010s. Its sequel has a lot to live up to.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is slated to release sometime in 2024 in theatres worldwide.

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