An inside source recently reported to The Wall Street Journal that Netflix is currently in the early stages of developing a live action Zelda series. At this point, it is reported that Netflix is still looking for writers for the show.
The associated press has reached out to Netflix and Nintendo to confirm this claim, but both have refused to comment.
The Wall Street Journal is depicting this as something that is definitely happening, but at the moment their source remains anonymous. A quick check of the Jobs At Netflix page reveals that there are no open positions for writers, but Netflix could be using an agency or other means to look for talent.
The new series has been described as being comparable to Game of Thrones but for family audiences. It has been further stated that its story will predictably revolve around Link, an ordinary boy tasked with rescuing the Princess Zelda and saving the fantasy realm of Hyrule.
The Zelda intellectual property has not been developed into a TV show since it was featured as a small part of The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! in 1989. As a child, I remember eagerly awaiting for the Zelda portion of this show to arrive on Fridays.
Even if the reports are completely true, this new series is so early into development that anything could happen between now and its eventual release. Nintendo has been notoriously protective of its intellectual properties and could kill production if it sees the series developing into something that falls shorts of their standards. Localization may also be an issues. While it's probably safe to say the show is being developed for English audiences, as all Netflix original content has so far — It is not out of the question to assume that Nintendo will want quality localization for Japanese audiences.
Netflix's library of original content has been growing at a surprising rate and the company has released 17 different series that are either original, or continuations of series that Netflix saw as promising, but were dropped or traded away by their original networks. The streaming titan also boasts having over 25 new specials and series in development, with many more that have yet to be fully confirmed.
The current consumer vibe in response to the possibility of a new Zelda series seems to be a mix of incredulity and excitement. While I have faith that Netflix can bring us a great Zelda series, others here at TechRaptor are extremely skeptical. If the series is eventually released, will it fail to meet viewer expectations? Will fans tear it apart for not being true to its source material? Please let us know what you think in the comments below.
