Nintendo has announced the actors set to portray Link and Zelda in its upcoming live-action The Legend of Zelda film — but who are Bo Bragason and Benjamin Evan Ainsworth?
Unlike the casting of Chris Pratt as Mario in The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Nintendo has chosen a pair of relatively unknown actors to fill its next set of iconic roles.
Perhaps that’s for the best, considering the initially mixed reaction to Pratt’s announcement. But it’s also likely out of necessity, as Link and Zelda are traditionally portrayed as younger characters — and indeed, Ainsworth has landed his role as the series’ protagonist while aged just 16.
All of that said, both Ainsworth and Bragason are far from amateurs, and both already have several notable roles under their belts.
Benjamin Evan Ainsworth is Link
Ainsworth, from Yorkshire in northern England, received his first acting credit in the long-running TV soap Emmerdale, aged just 10. His first major role was in Netflix’s 2020 horror miniseries The Haunting of Bly Manor, where he played main character Miles Wingrave, one of the creepy children that Victoria Pedretti’s character looks after.
In 2022, Ainsworth voiced the main role of Pinocchio in Disney’s live-action remake of its classic animated film. More recently, he starred in Canadian comedy series Son of a Critch, a 1980s-set coming of age story that charts Ainsworth’s main character through his early teens.
Most recently, Ainsworth starred opposite Bryan Cranston and Allison Janney in the comedy-drama indie film Everything’s Going to Be Great!, which received a limited release in theaters last month. Watch the trailer below to hear Ainsworth’s voice — albeit with an American accent. Link speaks!
Bo Bragason is Zelda
Bo Bragason, Nintendo’s pick to play Zelda, is also British. Born in Chichester in 2004, Bragason spent parts of her childhood in France — and technically first appeared on screen as a toddler in a French film, L’Amour Caché, opposite Inglourious Basterds star Mélanie Laurent.
Later, in 2007, Bragason got her first big screen brush with the world of video games, providing motion capture for Young Luna in Square Enix’s CGI movie Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV.
Bragason’s breakout roles both came in 2024, when she played the younger sister of Renegade Nell in Netflix’s fantasy drama of the same name, and the scene-stealing Amy Knightly in BBC murder mystery miniseries The Jetty. Her character there, a drink-swilling rebellious teen, is likely as far away from a portrayal of Zelda as we’re likely to see — though both characters do share something of a fondness for horses.
With Nintendo’s two main roles filled, attention now turns to who else might star in the live-action The Legend of Zelda film. The franchise’s key role of Ganon seems almost guaranteed to appear, and we wouldn’t be surprised to see other recurring characters such as Impa turn up too.
Could Jack Black return in yet another video game adaptation, this time as Ganon? While a more veteran actor might be likely in the role to give the film some added star power, past comments from the project’s director Wes Ball suggest he’s not looking for someone who can pull off yet another comedy musical number.
Discussing the film in May 2024, Ball said The Legend of Zelda should feel “grounded” and “real,” with as little motion capture as possible — despite his previous work on the CGI-heavy Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.
With less than two years to go until The Legend of Zelda opens in theaters, Nintendo is still yet to say anything of the film’s story or setting. Could this movie be an adaptation of an existing game, such as the series’ biggest hit, Nintendo Switch title The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, now relaunched for Switch 2? Or will the film tell an original tale (as original as Zelda storylines ever get)?
Today’s casting news provided our first look at both Ainsworth and Bragason wearing clothes akin to costumes for their roles — the former in a green tunic, the latter in a blue dress reminiscent of Zelda’s attire in Breath of the Wild — though it’s likely we’re not seeing their final appearances. For one thing, Ainsworth has dark hair, and for another, neither actor appears to have Hylian ears.
Still, some fans believe today’s announcement suggests the start of filming is now not far away — with Nintendo potentially getting ahead of any on-set leaks. Here’s hoping we get more news (and a confirmation of Tingle?) soon.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at [email protected] or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
