(Bloomberg) -- Nintendo Co. and U.S. animation studio Illumination are developing a second film based on the video game characters, seeking to recreate the first movie's surprise commercial success.
The new film will be produced by Illumination founder and Chief Executive Officer Chris Meledandri and Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto, the game's original creator, the companies said in a press release dated Sunday. The movie will be released on Apr. 3, 2026, they said.
Nintendo has been trying to bring its popular characters to the big screen, with Miyamoto recently saying the company wants to some day create one movie every year. Like last year's , which generated almost $1.4 billion in global ticket sales, the film will be distributed by Universal Pictures, and will be directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic. Matthew Fogel will also return to write the script.
Nintendo shares fell 0.3%, continuing to pare gains after hitting an all-time high last month.
The Kyoto-based company has been exploring ways to expand its revenue beyond video games and cyclical game console sales. Sales of its Switch console remain solid, but investors fear it'll be hard to maintain momentum against fierce competition. The company recently told game developers that it was pushing back the launch of its Switch successor to the beginning of next year. That means the seven-year-old Switch console will be battling new and more powerful consoles from Sony Group Corp. and Microsoft Corp. during the year-end holiday season.
The first movie followed a decade of internal discussions, and served to test the strength of Nintendo's intellectual property. In the nine months to December, movies helped nearly double Nintendo's mobile and IP-related business revenue to ¥75.2 billion ($512 million).
The company is now developing a live-action film based on the Legend of Zelda game franchise, with Nintendo financing more than 50% of the movie production. Sony Pictures Entertainment will also provide funding and handle global distribution.
--With assistance from Yasufumi Saito.
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