Four years after Nintendo and Universal Pictures formalized their partnership, which resulted in the creation of several future film projects, we can finally get a look at their collaboration. Big N and Illumination released first trailer for Super Marioanimated film based on one of the most iconic characters in video game history.
A lot of expectation and uncertainty exist around the feature film. Super Mario, especially since Nintendo and Illumination managed to keep the most important details of their project secret. For example, animation style, which will be very different from other works of the aforementioned studio. Let’s remember that Illumination was responsible for big screen successes such as Minions, Grinch D the secret life of pets.
Movie Super Mariowhich is scheduled to premiere on April 7, 2023, directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenik. The voice cast includes Chris Pratt (Mario), Anya Taylor-Joy (Princess Peach), Charlie Day (Luigi), Jack Black (Bowser), Keegan-Michael Key (Toad), Seth Rogan (Donkey Kong), Kevin Michael Richardson Kamek, Fred Armisen as Cranky Kong, Sebastian Maniscalco as Spike and Charles Martinet. Of course, we are waiting to hear the voices of Spain and Latin America.
A very important point, and to some extent it reassures fans Super Mario, lies in the fact that Nintendo itself is involved in the production. And he makes it through the very Shigeru Miyamoto, character creator. The Japanese creative has long shown interest in taking plumbers beyond consoles. “Our content business could be further developed if we could combine our favorite software with video resources and use them together for an extended period of time,” he said.
Nintendo wants to explode Super Mario like never before
The joining forces between Nintendo and Universal was unexpected because over the years big N resisted moving its franchises to film and animated television.. Given its great success in video games, market analysts and even the company’s investors predicted a similar triumph on the big screen. The latter, however, remains to be seen.
Curiously, the first fruit of the merger of the two companies was not a film. Super Mario, and an amusement park franchise in Osaka, Japan. It was opened in March 2021 – at the height of the pandemic – and little by little began to receive the desired number of visitors. In addition, a second park is still under construction in Orlando, Florida, right on the grounds of Universal Studios’ themed spaces.
So Nintendo’s idea is to take advantage of having Super Mario in three different entertainment sectors for manage your franchise like never before. The above, if done right, can be a goldmine for all parties involved. Rest assured, the guys from Kyoto are already developing a new game to coincide with the release of the movie next year.
