All we know about the upcoming Super Mario movie sequel

A sequel to 'The Super Mario Bros. Movie', released in April 2023, is in the making. Nintendo has announced it is working on the new Mario movie.

'The Super Mario Bros Movie' visualized the game world with Nintendo's iconic characters Mario and Luigi as the main characters.

Their voices in the English version were played by Chris Pratt (Mario, image) and Charlie Day (Luigi).

The long-awaited film adaptation received favorable reviews and the cumulative domestic box office revenue in 2023 exceeded $1.36 billion.

The cast also included Anya Taylor-Joy, who performed the voice of Princess Peach.

The news about the sequel was announced on Mario Day through a video on YouTube. March 10th (MAR 10) is affectionately known as 'Mario Day' in English-speaking countries.

Shigeru Miyamoto, Mario's creator and the producer of the first games, appears in the video, revealing that he is working on a new movie. He does so in collaboration with Illumination, the production company behind the previous movie.

Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri also appeared in the video, noting that the previous film's directors Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic are once again involved in the production of the new film.

Contrary to custom in Hollywood, the producers already had a very specific release date for the Super Mario sequel. It is slated to appear in theaters on April 3, 2026.

Details about the movie's storyline were not disclosed, but Shigeru Miyamoto commented in the video: "We're thinking about broadening Mario's world further, and it'll have a bright and fun story. We hope you'll look forward to it!''

Meanwhile, actors from the Super Mario movie have made comments about possible spin-offs focusing on individual characters. Charlie Day (image) said in 2022 and 2023, for example, that he wouldn't mind reprising his role as Luigi in a spin-off about Luigi's Mansion.

Seth Rogen, who plays Donkey Kong, remarked to the Madison website in 2023 that he would like to work on Donkey Kong Country, as it created "a lot of opportunity" for a spin-off.

While expanding the universe in a Mario movie sequel (and possibly spin-offs), the makers have also respected and honored their past. In the Super Mario Bros film from 2023, actor Charles Martinet had a cameo as the plumbers' father. He is the original voice actor who played both Mario and Luigi in the first games.

In November 2023, Nintendo announced its plans for a live-action movie based on the game series 'The Legend of Zelda'. It has already begun producing the movie.

Wes Ball, the director of the 'Maze Runner' series and 'Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes' (2024), will direct the Zelda live-action movie.

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Nintendo's release states it's "creating new opportunities to have people from around the world access the world of entertainment which Nintendo has built, through different means apart from its dedicated game consoles." The company, previously careful with the use of its images in pop culture, appears ready to branch out and become a multimedia empire.

Image: Cláudio Luiz Castro / Unsplash