Should Link From Zelda Be Played By A Woman?
After watching the trailer for this live-action fan film based on The Legend of Zelda, it got me thinking: Link is male. The actor is male. Sensible casting, right?
Maybe not.
Consider Peter Pan, the story of a boy Link's age who wears a very similar outfit, and not only carries a little sword-knife, but even has pointy ears.
Now I do realize there are differences between humans and Hylians. However, if Hollywood ever made a big-budget Zelda flick* might it actually make sense to take a cue from the stage version of the Peter Pan story, and cast a female as the lead?
Personally, I'd rather watch Link played by someone like Ellen Page way before Zac Efron.
Who would you pick to be Link?
UPDATE: Here's a female Link (thanks Agies!):
*A definite possibility now that they've already co-opted the heck out of comics.
photo by Chris CB
11 Comments
Leave a comment
AT |
|
Gorgeous line graph of sci-fi TV themes over past 4 decades
Best iPhone Apps: The Guide for Discriminating Downloaders
Open design for a 67 TB array for $7867
1891 Proposal for a bullet ride dropped from the Eiffel Tower
Consumerist sued by Cash4Gold after critical blog posts
AT |
|
Insert Data Here [Better Headline?]
Review: 16 Months w/Belkin's 300W DC/AC Inverter
HOWTO Make A Cheap Version of Muji's CD Player
Swarm Bots: Now W/Solar Power, Complex Behaviors!
Review: A shower with the SimpleHuman bamboo adjustable caddy
Apple iPod Announcement: Sept 9th
se4n
#1 – 12:32 PM August 26, 2009
No one -- I have no problem with a Zelda film, I just see no need for it to be live-action. Make it an animated flick that approximates the cel-shaded style of Wind Waker and I'll go see that.
Rob Beschizza
#2 – 1:26 PM August 26, 2009
In the cluster of responses one may have to this trailer, "They picked the wrong dude" is probably more sensible than "They should have picked a girl."
That said, who am I to say no?
http://bit.ly/femalelink
If they spend any money on a movie, it would probably be best spent on animation of some kind.
Steven Leckart
#3 – 1:57 PM August 26, 2009
@Rob:
I followed your bit.ly and found not one, but two dominated female Links:
http://fc06.deviantart.com/fs28/f/2008/044/3/3/Female_Link_In_Peril_by_Badspot.jpg
http://users.telenet.be/Vegitto/link.jpg
Not to be that guy, but that speaks volumes imho...
Rob Beschizza
#4 – 2:21 PM August 26, 2009
Yeah, the problem with anything like this is that the lowest uncommon denominator will grab it and do horrible things to it!
Agies
#5 – 2:25 PM August 26, 2009
Here's live action female (I think) Link. Nintendo produced and everything:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zv5OIvwqkvM
Felix Mitchell
#6 – 2:47 PM August 26, 2009
Rob: says the blog with link upskirt pics!
Steven Leckart
#7 – 3:15 PM August 26, 2009
@Agies:
GREAT find, thanks!
loeffe
#8 – 12:09 AM August 27, 2009
If they ever do make a Zelda movie, I think Emile Hirsch should play Link.
They're both androgynous youngsters who like to roam around the countryside (see Into the Wild)
He also has a girl-sounding name.
So there...
Icupnimpn2
#9 – 5:34 PM August 27, 2009
For a 30 second commercial spot... I think it doesn't matter.
For a full film, I think having a female play Link would be a Halle Berry as Catwoman-level mistake.
ryuthrowsstuff
#10 – 10:34 AM August 28, 2009
Peter Pan was played by a woman due to the difficulty in finding a man who could project to the back of the theater and still have the right tone of voice. Prepubescent boys have trouble projecting. Combined with the distance from stage to audience the difference was negligible. Now a days its mostly tradition combined with a bit of child labor laws.
Beyond that Link's age is ill defined. He's either prepubescent or in his late teens. And given the manual art from the original game, and overall focus on "adult link" in 2 of the 3 3d games (can't tell in the 2d ones) I tend to come down on the "links and manly man" side of things. Besides there would be little or no technical problems in using a dude to play the dude character. And given how films are shot, even with a no name you'd be able to tell it was chick. It would reek of stunt casting.
Spike the Dingo
#11 – 10:51 PM August 29, 2009
Boy or girl aside. If they ever made a Zelda film I would stick my fingers in my ears and go: "lah-lah-lah-lah-lah...". As for these little clips, I'll just pretend they never happened. No good film has ever come from a good video game...ever.