EXCLUSIVE: Earlier today, news broke that Australia’s Uli Latukefu had landed the villain role of Ganondorf in The Legend of Zelda, Nintendo and Sony‘s live-action feature film based on the popular video game. And now, sources tell us that the late Sam Neill also will appear in the film.
Reps for Sony couldn’t be reached for comment, nor could Neill’s former reps. The project, which wrapped in April, will mark one of Neill’s final screen performances, if not the last. It’s not yet clear who he plays. Neill died July 13 at 78.
Other new additions to the Zelda movie include Severance‘sDichen Lachman and The Handmaid’s Tale‘s Yvonne Strahovski.
Sources were unclear on Strahovski’s role, though we’re told she plays a queen character. They had Lachman playing Impa, the bodyguard and advisor to up-and-comer Bo Bragason’s Princess Zelda.
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The Zelda movie’s plot remains under wraps. As previously announced, Benjamin Evan Ainsworth stars opposite Bragason in the lead role of Link. Castings for the Zelda tentpole have been very closely guarded — these, along with Latukefu’s, are the first to emerge since Nintendo announced the two leads last July.
Sony first announced it would distribute and team with Nintendo to co-finance a Zelda movie in the fall of 2023, with the Planet of the Apes franchise’s Wes Ball coming aboard to direct, and Miyamoto and Avi Arad set to produce. T.S. Nowlin penned the most recent draft of the script. The film is slated for release in theaters on May 7, 2027.
The Legend of Zelda franchise, created by Miyamoto and Takashi Tezuka, follows the elf-like warrior Link and Princess Zelda as they fight to save the magical land of Hyrule from Ganon, an evil warlord-turned-demon king. Since its launch on Nintendo in 1986, the franchise has sold over 150 million units.
A New Zealand screen legend known for his role in the Jurassic Park franchise, among myriad other projects, Neill passed away on July 13. Prior to that, he had appeared in series including Apples Never Fall, Untamed and The Twelve. In addition to Zelda, he leaves behind performances in the upcoming The Last Resort, a romantic comedy starring Daisy Ridley and Alden Ehrenreich, and Warner/Legendary’s Godzilla x Kong: Supernova.
Best known for her role of Ms. Casey in Apple TV’s Severance, Lachman will next be seen in Universal’s horror film Other Mommy, out October 9. She is repped by Gersh, Management Production Entertainment, and Yorn, Levine, Barnes.
The recipient of multiple Emmy nominations for her turn as Gilead’s Serena Joy Waterford in Hulu’s The Handmaid’s Tale, Strahovski is repped by Paradigm, Sue Barnett and Associates, Prime Talent Media, and Hansen, Jacobson, Teller.
