The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2024)

The Super Mario Bros. Movie is a 2023 Japanese American computer-animated adventure comedy film produced by Illumination in association with Nintendo, and distributed by Universal Pictures. It is the third feature film adaptation of Nintendo's Mario video game series, following the 1986 Japanese anime film, Super Mario Bros.: The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach! and the 1993 live-action film Super Mario Bros. The film is directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic from a screenplay by Matthew Fogel and features an ensemble voice cast including Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Day, Jack Black, Keegan-Michael Key, Seth Rogen, Fred Armisen, Sebastian Maniscalco, Charles Martinet, and Kevin Michael Richardson.

After the critical and commercial failure of the 1993 film, Nintendo was reluctant to license its intellectual properties for film adaptations. Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto became interested in developing another Mario film when Nintendo was bringing its older games to the Virtual Consoleservice, and through Nintendo's work with Universal Parks & Resorts to create Mario-based attractions he met Illumination founder Chris Meledandri. By 2016, the two were discussing a Mario film, and in January 2018 Nintendo announced that it would collaborate with Illumination and Universal to produce it. Production was underway by 2020.

The film was released in the United States on April 5, 2023.

Plot[]

Italian-American brothers Mario and Luigi have recently opened a plumbing business in Brooklyn, to the derision of their ex-employer Spike and the disapproval of their father. After seeing a significant water main leak on the news, Mario and Luigi go underground to fix it but are sucked into a Warp Pipe and separated.

Mario lands in the Mushroom Kingdom, ruled by Princess Peach, while Luigi arrives in the Dark Lands, ruled by the evil Koopa king Bowser. Bowser seeks to marry Peach and will destroy the Mushroom Kingdom using a Super Star if she refuses. He imprisons Luigi to threaten Mario, whom he sees as competition for Peach's love. Mario meets Toad, who takes him to Peach. Peach plans to ally with the primate Kongs to help repel Bowser and allows Mario and Toad to travel with her. She also tells Mario that she ended up in the Mushroom Kingdom as a baby, where the Toads took her in and eventually made her their leader. In the Jungle Kingdom, King Cranky Kong agrees to help if Mario defeats his son, Donkey Kong, in a fight. Despite Donkey Kong's immense strength, Mario defeats him using a Cat Suit.

Mario, Peach, Toad, and the Kongs use karts to drive back to the Mushroom Kingdom, but Bowser's army ambushes them on Rainbow Road. When a Koopa General destroys part of the road in a kamikaze attack, Mario and Donkey Kong plummet to the ocean while the other Kongs are captured. Peach and Toad return to the Mushroom Kingdom and urge the citizens to evacuate. Bowser arrives aboard his flying castle and proposes to Peach, who reluctantly accepts after Bowser's advisor Kamek tortures Toad. Mario and Donkey Kong, having been eaten by an eel-like Maw-Ray, learn they both want the respect of their fathers. They escape the Maw-Ray by riding a rocket from Donkey Kong's kart and hurry to Bowser and Peach's wedding.

At the wedding ceremony, Bowser intends to execute all of his prisoners in lava in Peach's honor. Toad smuggles an Ice Flower into Peach's bouquet, which she uses to freeze Bowser. Mario and Donkey Kong arrive and free the prisoners, with Mario using a Tanooki Suit to save Luigi. An enraged Bowser frees himself and summons a Bomber Bill to destroy the Mushroom Kingdom, but Mario knocks it off course and directs it into the Warp Pipe where it detonates, creating a vacuum that causes everyone and Bowser's flying fortress to be transported to Brooklyn. As they fight Bowser, Mario and Luigi grab the Super Star, become invincible, defeat the Koopas, and destroy Bowser's flying fortress. Peach then shrinks Bowser with a Mini Mushroom and imprisons him. Mario and Luigi are hailed as heroes by Brooklyn's populace, including their parents and Spike. Afterwards, the brothers move to a house in the Mushroom Kingdom and begin a day of plumbing work together.

In a post credit scene, a Yoshi egg starts to crack in the sewers of Brooklyn Teasing A Future Sequel.

Voice Cast (in order of appearance)[]

• Kevin Michael Richardson as Kamek
• Jack Black as Bowser
• Khary Payton as Penguin King
• Chris Pratt as Mario
• Charlie Day as Luigi
• Charles Martinet as Mario's Dad & Gluseppe
• Sebastian Maniscalco as Foreman Spike
• Rino Romano as Uncle Tony
• John DiMaggio as Uncle Arthur
• Jessica DiCicco as Mario's Mom
• Keegan-Michael Key as Toad
• Eric Bauza as Toad General
• Anya Taylor-Joy as Princess Peach
• Fred Armisen as Cranky Kong
• Seth Rogen as Donkey Kong
• Juliet Jelenic as Lumalee
• Scott Menville as Koopa General

Production[]

Development[]

After the critical and commercial failure of the 1993 Super Mario Bros. film adaptation, Japanese video game company Nintendo became wary of licensing its properties for film adaptations.^[1] According to Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto, the idea for a new Mario film came from bringing their older games to the Virtual Console and other services; such transitions took time for the company, and Miyamoto recognized that "our content business would be able to develop even further if we were able to combine our long-beloved software with that of video assets, and utilize them together for extended periods."^[2] Miyamoto knew that the process of making a film was far different from that of making a video game, and wanted a film expert to lead the effort.^[3]

Following the November 2014 hack of Sony Pictures, emails between producer Avi Arad, studio chief Amy Pascal, TriStar Pictures head Tom Rothman, and Sony Pictures Animation president of production Michelle Raimo Kouyate were released revealing that Sony had been attempting to secure the film rights to the Mario franchise for several years. Arad visited Nintendo in Tokyo in February and July 2014 in an attempt to secure a deal. In October, Arad emailed Pascal and said he had closed the deal with Nintendo. Pascal suggested recruiting Hotel Transylvania director Genndy Tartakovsky to help develop the project, while Kouyate said she could "think of 3–4 movies right out of the gate" and expressed hope in "build[ing] a Mario empire."^[1] However, after the emails leaked, Arad denied that a deal had been made, stating that negotiations had only begun. BuzzFeed News noted that the emails did not take into account potential conflicts with Sony Pictures' corporate sibling Sony Interactive Entertainment, one of Nintendo's chief competitors.^[1]

Through Nintendo's work with Universal Parks & Resorts to create Mario-based attractions, Miyamoto met Chris Meledandri, founder of Universal Pictures' Illumination animation division. Miyamoto found Meledandri's creative process similar to his own, and felt he would be the proper lead for a Mario film. They had started more earnest discussions by 2016, knowing that if they felt it would not work that they could easily walk away.^[3] In November 2017, reports emerged that Nintendo was collaborating with Universal and Illumination to make an animated Mario film.^[4] Then-Nintendo president Tatsumi Kimishima clarified that a deal had not been finalized, but that an announcement would come soon. Kimishima hoped that if the deal was successful, a 2020 release date would be possible.^[5] In January 2018, Nintendo announced that the film would progress with Miyamoto and Meledandri co-producing.^[6] Meledandri said the film was a "priority" for Illumination and that it will most likely come out in 2022. He added that Miyamoto would be "front and center" during production.^[7] In January 2020, Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa stated that the film was "moving along smoothly" with an expected 2022 release date. Furukawa also said Nintendo would own the rights to the film, and both Nintendo and Universal would fund the production.^[8]

In August 2021, it emerged that Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic were directing the film after the discovery of an Illumination animator's LinkedIn profile that included the film in their list.^[9] Following the full casting announcement, Horvath and Jelenic were confirmed to be directing, with Matthew Fogel attached as the screenwriter.^[10]

In September 2022, it was announced by New York Comic Con that the film's teaser trailer will be released on October 6, 2022. Shortly thereafter, Ed Skudder, creator of Dick Figures and developer of Unikitty!, confirmed that he worked as head of story on the film. Its second trailer was released on November 29, 2022, with the final trailer released on March 9, 2023 (Mario Day 2023 in some countries), but before it did so in February, its American release date was pushed 2 days early to April 5, 2023.

Casting[]

In February 2021, Mario voice actor Charles Martinet said the possibility of reprising his role in the film would be a "marvelous thing" and that if he were asked to voice Mario, "I'll go in and play with great joy and happiness."^[11] In August 2021, Sebastian Maniscalco revealed he was voicing Spike, Mario and Luigi's boss from the game Wrecking Crew (1985).^[12]

During a September 2021 Nintendo Direct presentation, Shigeru Miyamoto announced that Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Day, Jack Black, Keegan-Michael Key, Seth Rogen, Kevin Michael Richardson, Fred Armisen, and Maniscalco would headline the voice cast, and that Martinet would be featured in "surprise cameos."^[13] This announcement was met with a mixed reaction from longtime fans: while some welcomed the idea of celebrity actors voicing the characters, others were highly critical of the choices, in particular Pratt as Mario instead of Martinet (who has voiced the character since 1992) or an Italian actor.^[14]

Plot details were kept secret to the actors during recording, according to Day, who noted he had to record his dialogue in many different ways, after which the directors selected the version they believed would be best suited for the scene.

Animation[]

The film is animated by Illumination Studios Paris, which has animated many of Illumination's previous films, in Paris, France.^[15] Production was underway by September 2020.^[16]

Release[]

The film was released in the United States on April 5, 2023, by Universal Pictures,^[17] and will be available to stream on Peaco*ck 45 days afterwards.^[18] It was previously set for a release on December 21, 2022 and April 7, 2023.

Marketing[]

The film's first visuals were unveiled in a teaser poster the same day of the cast's announcement, showcasing a glowing question block. Another teaser poster was posted on the official film's Twitter account on October 4, 2022, featuring Mario's backside, an assortment of Toads, a Cheep Cheep, and Princess Peach's castle. Additionally, a Nintendo Direct presentation dedicated to the film featuring the first teaser trailer was announced and it livestreamed on October 6, 2022, and it was also screened at New York Comic Con 2022 on the same day.

Future[]

In May 2021, Furukawa said that Nintendo was interested in producing more animated films based on its IP if the Mario film is successful.^[19] The following November, reports emerged that Illumination was developing a Donkey Kong spin-off film, with Rogen set to reprise his role.^[20]In February 2022, Charlie Day expressed interest in doing a Luigi's Mansion film. Then on March 10 2024 on Mario day, it was revealed that Illumination and Nintendo have been working on another movie based on the world of the Super Mario Bros. Not much was revealed about it, but it’s scheduled to release on April 3 2026 in the US.

Trivia[]

• This is the first Illumination film ever to be rated PG in the UK and Ireland.

Gallery[]

Trailers[]

References[]

External links[]

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