The September 23 Nintendo Direct virtual event was filled with exciting announcements, including updates on long-awaited projects such as Splatoon 3, Bayonetta 3, and many more. However, one announcement took some fans by surprise: news on the upcoming Super Mario Bros. movie. Shigeru Miyamoto, the creator of the iconic plumber character, who has reportedly been working on the Super Mario Bros. film for several years, appeared in person during the livestream to announce an update regarding the film.
The upcoming film is the second Hollywood feature to star plumber brothers Mario and Luigi as well as their fellow friends and enemies alike from the Mushroom Kingdom. The first film, also titled Super Mario Bros., released in 1993. It starred Bob Hoskins as Mario and John Leguizamo as Luigi, and was the first English-language live-action film to be based on a video game. Although it received mixed reviews, the film has since become a cult classic, especially among fans of the Super Mario Bros. games. The upcoming film, unlike its 1993 predecessor, will be animated and will reportedly be more closely inspired by the plots of the game series.
Shigeru Miyamoto appeared as a surprise guest during the September 23rd Nintendo Direct to announce that the Super Mario Bros. film will be premiering in North America on December 21, 2022. Japanese, European, and other international release dates are to be announced at a later time. A follow-up Tweet from Nintendo of America further confirmed this release date.
Alongside the release date, Miyamoto was able to reveal a number of cast members who will be lending their voices to iconic characters from the franchise. These included Chris Pratt as Mario, Anya Taylor-Joy as Princess Peach, Charlie Day as Luigi, Keegan-Michael Key as Toad, and Jack Black as King Bowser Koopa, Mario’s longtime enemy and rival for Peach’s affections. Seth Rogen will also appear as Donkey Kong, a character who had not been previously revealed to appear in the movie.
Additional cast members announced during the Nintendo Direct were Fred Armisen as Donkey Kong’s relative Cranky Kong, Kevin Michael Richardson as Bowser’s ally Kamek, and Sebastian Maniscalco as Wrecking Crew’s Foreman Spike. Charles Martinet, who has provided the voice of Mario in multiple games, will also appear in the film in a currently undisclosed cameo role.
The development of the animated Super Mario Bros. film was announced in 2017. Miyamoto’s announcement marks the first major update regarding the film, which will be co-produced by Nintendo and Illumination Studios, in several years. However, it was announced earlier in 2021 that Chris Meledrandri, the CEO of Illumination Studios, had joined Nintendo’s board of directors as a result of the collaboration on the film.
Other Mario-related announcements during the Nintendo Direct included an update to Mario Golf: Super Rush, which will add a Koopa Troopa as a playable character, and more information regarding Mario Party Superstars, which will release for the Nintendo Switch on October 29, 2021. Super Mario 64 will also be appearing among the titles added to Nintendo Switch Online via an upcoming expansion pack. Hopefully, these titles will be able to tide Super Mario Bros. fans over until the movie’s release.
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