In a since deleted post on Instagram, cinematographer Gyula Pados shared a picture of the clapboard for the upcoming live-action Legend of Zelda film. Seen with the codename Umami, the board has an artist’s rendition of what Link looks like in the movie. It’s not a totally original concept, either, as the face is very clearly that of actor Benjamin Evan Ainsworth, the kid tapped to play Link.
new art of Link from The Legend of Zelda film (from Director of Photography Gyula Pados) www.instagram.com/gyula_pados_…
— Wario64 (@wario64.bsky.social) April 19, 2026 at 9:05 PM
What we can glean from the artwork is that Link’s design is based on that from The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. In the photo from the set we saw last year, Zelda was adorned in a blue dress, which is closer to how she looks in Breath of the Wild. This film is likely to be an original story rather than strictly based on a game, but it’s cool to see references in the costumes. The story could even wind up being some multiverse nonsense, though I’m not sure Nintendo would want Zelda’s cinematic debut to borrow from Hyrule Warriors.
As for the cinematographer, Pados has been involved in a wide range of films over the last 25+ years. His earlier work is mostly in European cinema, but he did cinematography for the rather interesting Metallica film “Through the Never.” He has also teamed up with Zelda director Wes Ball for both Maze Runner films and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, continuing their working relationship here. What I assume happened with the Instagram post is that he shared the image not realizing Nintendo would want it struck down ASAP. Most other productions don’t care about set photos like that.
Check out more Zelda content
Zelda: Majora’s Mask now has an unofficial port for the PlayStation Vita
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom – Secrets of the Zonai art book releases this October
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Written by Peter Glagowski
Peter has been a freelance gaming and film critic for over seven years. His passion for Nintendo is only matched by the size of his collection.
