On the occasion of Mario Day, Nintendo formalized the start of work on a second animated film centered on the mustachioed plumber. And always in partnership with Illumination.
Today is Mario’s day. And, on this occasion, Nintendo formalized what everyone was waiting for: the development of a new animated film centered on the famous plumber. “ It’s Miyamoto. We are working on a new animated film based on the world of Super Mario Bros. It is scheduled to arrive in theaters on April 3, 2026 in the United States and many other parts of the world », we can read in a tweet published by Nintendo France on March 10.
Unsurprisingly, Nintendo will once again collaborate with the Illumination studio. “ We plan to expand the world of Mario even further with a story that is as joyful as it is fun. We hope you’re looking forward to it! », promises Shigeru Miyamoto. Of course, it is still too early to go into further detail. But we can already get out our calendars: in April 2026, Mario will return to our big screens.
The sequel to the Mario film made official by Nintendo
Chris Meledandri, director of Illumination, said that this new film will revolve around new environments. Maybe Mario and his gang will move away from the Mushroom Kingdom and go somewhere else. The universe imagined by Nintendo has no shortage of wonderful places to visit (example: the Kingdom of Flowers, seen in Super Mario Bros. Wonder). Note that the feature film will still be directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic. Visually, we can already expect a result that meets expectations.
The start of a new animated film in the colors of Mario is not surprising if we refer to the success of the first opus. Super Mario Bros. The film grossed more than $1.3 billion at the worldwide box office (source: Box office Mojo), placing it in the top 20 best performers of all time. The public was there for this family comedy carried by one of the most popular characters in the world.
We remind you that Nintendo really nourishes the desire to develop in the Seventh Art. The Japanese company has also teamed up with Sony Pictures to offer a film on The Legend of Zelda (but in live-action this time). We should expect to see more and more projects of this type multiply in the future, especially if the audience is there.
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