The unquestionable king of platforms and the most recognizable character in the history of video games makes his biggest leap: from consoles to the big screen. Super Mario Bros. The Movie will transfer the superstar of Nintendo and the essence of his games to a medium as different as cinema, and it must be recognized that the project is in wonderful hands: in the film he participates Shigeru Miyamoto, its creator, and is being brought to life by the animation studio Illumination. Given this, a question: Will Nintendo put its well-known seal of quality on it?
being fair, Super Mario Bros. The Movie It is not the first film based on the character. It’s not even the first animated feature film starring Mario. But different from Super Mario Bros. the film starring Bob Hoskins and Dennis Hopper or the 1986 anime recently restored in 4K, Universal Pictures cannot afford to waver in the face of the sky-high expectations placed by generations of fans of the character. Luckily for everyone, the creators of the Minions have taken fans very seriously.
In Extra Life we have gathered in one place everything that is known, has been said and is being rumored about Super Mario Bros. The Movie. From its plot to its original cast of voices and in the Spanish version, passing -of course- through the development process of this long-awaited joint production between Universal and Nintendo.
Our starting point is the million dollar question at this point: when will the movie of Super Mario Bros. to movie theaters.
Super Mario Bros. The Movie Release Date
In Spain, Super Mario Bros. The Movie premieres on Friday March 31 exclusively in theaters. For reference, in the United States and practically the rest of the world, the film is scheduled to hit theaters on April 7although we will not be the first to see it: in Sweden it will be screened on April 24 and in Australia on April 30.
On the other hand, and as a reference, the Japanese debut of Super Mario Bros. The Movie in theaters it will take place on April 28. Practically a month after the rest of the world. All in all, it is not ruled out that Nintendo takes advantage of this new impetus from the Japanese premiere to offer surprises or some commemorative event on Nintendo Switch or the eShop.
However, it should be remembered that originally the premiere of Super Mario Bros. The Movie it was planned for 2022. The definitive date of the premiere was offered shortly before the New York Comic-Con, being accompanied very shortly after by the launch of the first trailer for the film during the same event.
The plot: what is Super Mario Bros. The Movie about?
Universal Pictures has described Super Mario Bros. The Movie like a animated action comedy based on the world of Super Mario Bros., and the truth is that its plot is quite faithful to that of classic video games:
A colossal flying ship covers the skies menacingly. Bowser, the powerful and irascible king of the Koopas, has begun to impose chaos and destruction wherever he goes. Imposing himself with his army on the rest of the Kingdoms. His main objective does not seem to be conquest, but rather mysterious Superstars conveniently guarded in each castle, but it is clear that it is only the previous step to a greater plan.
Under normal circumstances Bowser would barely have any stamina. In addition to his enormous brute strength and his ability to breathe fire, he has legions of suitably armed Koopas and even a powerful wizard at his service. However, the last of his shoe has just arrived to the Mushroom Kingdom.
A plump figure regains consciousness among mushrooms the size of trees. His huge blue eyes, his even bigger nose and a specially groomed mustache would not go unnoticed if it weren’t for that huge red cap that matches his shirt and contrasts with his denim overalls. Covering his hands, pristine white gloves. Embroidered on the visor of the cap, a single letter: the “M” of Mario.
Mario just got ejected from a pipe and he doesn’t seem to be very aware that the fate of the world depends on his mustache not getting too singed. However, he is clear about his next destination: the Mushroom Kingdom. It will be a matter of time before he and the terrible Bowser cross paths, but at the moment he seems to be more interested in reaching the castle of Princess Peach. What better place to embark on a great adventure?
On the production of Super Mario Bros. The Movie
The meeting that would lead to the creation of Super Mario Bros. The Movie took place in 2017, although it was officially announced on February 1, 2018 as part of a dual alliance by Universal and Nintendo. Both titans of entertainment joined forces before the world to shape two great projects:
- A colossal theme area in Universal’s amusement parks called Super Nintendo World.
- A new animated film co-financed by Universal Pictures and Nintendo itself and will be distributed worldwide by Universal Pictures
On the same day as the announcement it became official that Illumination, the studio behind the successful the minions either Sings, would take the responsibility of taking Mario to movie theaters. Of course, the highest officials of all the parties involved would take part in the project: Super Mario Bros. The Movie has been produced by Chris Meledandri, the founder and CEO of Illumination, and himself Shigeru Miyamoto, who is Mario’s father and Donkey Kong.
When it comes to directing, Mario’s fate on the big screen rests in the hands of Aaron Horvath Y Michael Jelenicwho have worked wonderfully with both the animated series Teen Titans Go as through the leap to the big screen of DC’s young heroes with Teen Titans Go: The Movie. In addition, the libretto bears the signature of Matthew Fogel, screenwriter of The lego movie 2 Y Minions: The Origin of Gru.
According to Meledandri himself, the Illumination studio is full of fans of Mario video games. Something that was more than evident in the level of detail and the countless winks put into the first official poster of the movie, offered on October 4, 2022 on the eve of the game’s first trailer.
As regards the production of Super Mario Bros. The Movie we know that in April 2022 its premiere was postponed to 2023 and that on October 6 of that same year the animation process was just one week away from being completed, which meant that the film would go on to new phases such as lighting, composition and other key elements.
The soundtrack of Super Mario Bros. The Movie runs on behalf of brian tylerto whom we owe the official theme of Formula 1 as well as the scores of films such as the Fast & Furious saga, the recent Chip and Chop movie or games of the caliber of far cry 3, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 either Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag. Meledandri assured that it only took Tyler 11 days to have the scores and that Koji Kondo himself, composer of the video games of Super Mariocollaborated in the process.
From this point on, the doubt arises by itself: we all know what Mario and Bowser look like in the games, but: who will voice them in the film?
Super Mario Bros. The Movie: The Voice Cast
Nintendo made official the original voices of Super Mario Bros. The movie in English on September 24, 2021, confirming a true stellar cast led by Chris Pratt (Star-Lord in Marvel and Owen Grady in Jurassic World) as the voice of Mario and Jack Black (School of Rock) as Bowser. They were joined by the talents of Anya Taylor-Joy (queen’s gambit) as Peach or Charlie Day as Luigi.
Below is the list of confirmed actors for Super Mario Bros. The Movie.
| CHARACTER | portrait | original voice | Spanish voice (Spain) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mario |  | Chris Pratt | Guillermo Romero (Star-Lord in UCM, Ted Kasso, Superman in cinema and MultiVersus) |
| Princess peach |  | Anya Taylor-Joy | To be announced |
| Luigi |  | charlie day | To be announced |
| Bowser |  | Jack Black | Fernando ‘Nano’ Castro (Superman in animation and the voice of Eivor in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla) |
| Toad |  | Keegan-Michael Key | Juan Antonio Soler (Bilbo in The Hobbit trilogy) |
| Donkey Kong |  | seth roden | To be announced |
| Cranky Kong |  | Fred Armisen | To be announced |
| Kamek |  | Kevin Michael Richardson | To be announced |
| spike |  | sebastian maniscal | To be announced |
In addition to the above, we must add the voice of charles martinetat least in the English version, who has lent his voice to Mario and half of the Mushroom Kingdom for three decades, who will play different surprise cameos.
Most of the original actors have extensive experience both on screen and in voice recording. Chris Pratt has been the voice of Emmet, the protagonist of the lego movie or Barley Lightfoot in Onwards, from Disney and Pixar. We have seen Jack Black in practically every Double Fine game since Brutal and he is also very experienced with the microphone, being the original voice of Po in Kung Fu Panda.
As far as the Spanish voices are concerned, we know from the first trailer for Super Mario Bros. The Movie that William Romero will once again lend his voice to Chris Pratt, while Bowser will be voiced by none other than Fernando (Nano) CastroEivor’s voice in Assassin’s Creed ValhallaKhadgar in world of warcraft or Karl Heisenberg in Resident Evil Village.
Trailer and images
Super Mario Bros. The Movie It is possibly the most anticipated adaptation of the video game to the big screen to date. There are very good wicks to offer a great movie and that Miyamoto and Nintendo are so focused on it is something to consider. However, Jack Black himself, who lends his voice to Bowser, warms up the atmosphere by ensuring that more than a movie it will be a cinematographic event. Be a wonder or stay at the gates of achieving it, Black is absolutely right.
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Super Mario Bros. The Movie: Everything We Know So Far About The Nintendo And Illumination Movie