46 Fun Facts About Mario Movie

Which animation studio produced The Super Mario Bros. Movie with Nintendo?

Its founder met Mario's creator through the Super Nintendo World theme park project.

Who voices Mario in the 2023 film?

Chris Pratt voices Mario; his 2021 casting drew online memes, and his first, heavier New York accent was toned down before recording.

Who voices Bowser?

Jack Black, the Tenacious D frontman, voices Bowser; he also co-wrote and sang the Koopa King's piano love ballad, which he pitched himself.

Which actress voices Princess Peach?

Anya Taylor-Joy voices Princess Peach, written as the Mushroom Kingdom's capable ruler; the directors drew on her playable role in Super Mario 3D World.

Who voices Luigi?

Charlie Day, star of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, voices Luigi, Mario's nervous younger brother who is captured by Bowser's forces early in the film.

Seth Rogen voices which character?

Seth Rogen voices Donkey Kong, who fights Mario in the Jungle Kingdom arena; Fred Armisen plays his father, King Cranky Kong.

Keegan-Michael Key voices which Mushroom Kingdom resident?

Keegan-Michael Key voices Toad, the eager mushroom who guides Mario to Peach's castle and joins the quest to the Jungle Kingdom.

Sebastian Maniscalco was given the role of Spike after auditioning for which part?

Maniscalco auditioned for Mario by imitating the game voice, hoping an Italian-American would land the lead; he was cast instead as Spike, the brothers' ex-boss from 1985's Wrecking Crew.

Longtime game voice actor Charles Martinet cameos as the brothers' father and which citizen of their borough?

Giuseppe resembles Mario's original 1981 arcade look and speaks in the classic game voice; Tony and Arthur are the uncles.

Which animated series did directors Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic create before the film?

Their involvement leaked through a studio animator's LinkedIn profile in 2021.

Where does Luigi land after the brothers are separated by the Warp Pipe?

Luigi lands in the Dark Lands, Bowser's gloomy territory, where Shy Guys capture him; Mario, meanwhile, drops into the Mushroom Kingdom.

What power-up does Mario use to beat the Kong prince in their fight?

Mario grabs a Cat Suit mid-fight, and its claws and pounces let him beat the far stronger Kong prince; the Tanooki Suit only appears later, at Bowser's wedding.

On which iconic course does Bowser's army ambush the heroes' go-karts?

The kart chase runs along Rainbow Road, where a Koopa General's blue shell blows out the track and sends Mario and the Kong prince plunging into the sea.

What does Toad hide in Peach's wedding bouquet?

Peach pulls the hidden Ice Flower from her bouquet and uses its powers to freeze Bowser at the altar, stalling the ceremony.

What does Bowser threaten to destroy the Mushroom Kingdom with if Peach refuses to marry him?

Bowser seizes the Super Star from the Penguin Kingdom and threatens to wipe out the Mushroom Kingdom with it; the brothers later grab the Star and turn invincible.

How is Bowser finally dealt with at the end of the film?

Peach shrinks him with a blue Mini Mushroom and Toad seals him in a jar, where he stays until the sequel.

Where in New York do Mario and Luigi run their plumbing business?

The brothers run Super Mario Bros. Plumbing in Brooklyn, launched with a low-budget TV commercial that later inspires a beaten Mario to face Bowser once more.

Who is Lumalee, the nihilistic blue prisoner in Bowser's dungeon, voiced by?

Juliet Jelenic, daughter of Michael Jelenic, voiced the fan-favourite Luma and returned for the sequel.

Composer Brian Tyler worked closely with which longtime Nintendo composer on the score?

Brian Tyler consulted Koji Kondo, composer of the original 1985 Super Mario Bros. theme, and wove Kondo's game leitmotifs into the orchestral score.

What is the title of the love song Bowser sings at the piano?

Bowser's ballad 'Peaches' was co-written by his voice actor and peaked at No. 56 on the Billboard Hot 100 in April 2023.

Where was the film animated?

The film was animated at Illumination Studios Paris, the French studio formerly called Illumination Mac Guff that also animated the Despicable Me films.

Approximately how much did The Super Mario Bros. Movie gross worldwide?

It was the second-biggest film of 2023 behind Barbie and its studio's highest grosser, overtaking Minions.

What box-office milestone did the film achieve before any other video game adaptation?

It became the highest-grossing video game film after just one week, earning a Guinness World Record.

Which 2025 film later beat its opening-weekend record for a video game adaptation?

A Minecraft Movie opened to about $163 million domestically in April 2025, topping Mario's $146 million three-day debut; Bowser's voice actor also stars in it, as Steve.

In which country did the film become the highest-grossing movie of all time?

In Mexico it took about $85.4 million, overtaking every previous release to become the country's biggest box-office hit at the time; Japan was its largest overseas market at $101.4 million.

What was the film's Rotten Tomatoes score, despite an 'A' CinemaScore from audiences?

Critics gave it 59% on Rotten Tomatoes against a 95% audience score; Mario's creator suggested the mixed reviews actually helped by generating buzz.

Whose 2014 hacked emails revealed a rival studio's attempts to secure the Mario film rights?

The 2014 Sony Pictures hack leaked emails in which producer Avi Arad claimed to be securing Mario film rights from Nintendo; no Sony Mario film ever materialised.

Which two men are credited as the film's producers?

Miyamoto found Meledandri's creative process similar to his own and wanted a film expert to lead.

At which awards did the film receive three nominations, including one in a brand-new box-office category?

The 81st Golden Globes introduced Cinematic and Box Office Achievement in 2024; the film was nominated there, plus for Animated Feature and Original Song.

Who played Mario in the 1993 live-action Super Mario Bros.?

Bob Hoskins played Mario; he later named the film the worst job of his career, and Dustin Hoffman had lobbied for the part before him.

Who played Luigi in the 1993 live-action film?

John Leguizamo played Luigi; he and his Mario co-star reportedly drank scotch between takes, and a tipsy Leguizamo crashed a van on set, breaking his co-star's finger.

Dennis Hopper played the 1993 villain, known by what title?

Dennis Hopper played President Koopa, a human-evolved Tyrannosaurus ruling a parallel dimension; Hopper later joked he took the job to buy his son shoes.

What is the name of the dystopian dinosaur-descended city in the 1993 film?

Dinohattan is the film's parallel-dimension Manhattan, a grimy city of evolved dinosaurs ruled by Dennis Hopper's villain; its sets filled an abandoned cement plant in Wilmington, North Carolina.

Which princess do the brothers rescue in the 1993 film?

Samantha Mathis played Princess Daisy as an NYU archaeology student whose dig under a famous New York bridge leads the brothers into the parallel dimension.

Roughly how much did the 1993 film gross worldwide, against a budget of $42-48M?

It grossed about $39 million worldwide, roughly $21 million of that domestically, a flop that soured Nintendo on Hollywood adaptations for decades.

Which husband-and-wife team directed the 1993 film?

Rocky Morton and Annabel Jankel, the married British duo who created Max Headroom, directed the 1993 film and clashed with the producers and cast throughout the shoot.

What is the title of the 2026 sequel?

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, announced at a September 2025 Nintendo Direct, reunites the original directors and voice cast and opened in April 2026.

Brie Larson voices which princess in the 2026 sequel?

Brie Larson voices Rosalina, the cosmic princess first introduced in 2007's Super Mario Galaxy, in the 2026 sequel.

Who voices Bowser Jr. in the 2026 sequel?

Benny Safdie, who co-directed Uncut Gems with his brother Josh and acted in Oppenheimer, voices Bowser Jr. in the 2026 sequel.

The Koopa King's voice actor joked in 2023 that the sequel should be a musical with what title?

In April 2023 press interviews, Bowser's voice actor pitched a musical sequel titled 'Bowser's Revenge' and floated Pedro Pascal to voice Wario.

Who wrote the screenplay for The Super Mario Bros. Movie?

He had previously written Illumination's Minions: The Rise of Gru.

Who voices Kamek, Bowser's Magikoopa advisor?

Kevin Michael Richardson, the deep-voiced actor who took over Dr. Hibbert on The Simpsons in 2021, voices Kamek, Bowser's Magikoopa sorcerer.

Which TV mob character did Chris Pratt's scrapped original Mario voice sound too much like?

The directors said Pratt's first take on Mario sounded too much like Tony Soprano, a broad 'New York Italian guy', so the accent was softened into the final voice.

Which composer's 'DK Rap' introduces Donkey Kong in the film but went uncredited at the end?

Grant Kirkhope wrote the DK Rap for Rare's 1999 Nintendo 64 game and tweeted his disappointment at being left out of the film's credits.

Who directed the April 2023 music video for Bowser's piano ballad from the film?

Cole Bennett, founder of Lyrical Lemonade and best known for hip-hop videos for Lil Xan and Juice WRLD, directed the piano-and-castle video.

Where did The Super Mario Bros. Movie hold its premiere on April 1, 2023?

Universal released it in US cinemas four days later, on April 5.