Super Mario Bros. is probably the most cherished game in history. This platform game, developed by Nintendo, was released in 1985 as the successor to the arcade game Mario Bros. and it became the first in the Super Mario series. It features brothers Mario and Luigi, who must travel through the Mushroom Kingdom in order to rescue Princess Peach Toadstool from King Koopa/Bowser, whilst facing many dangers. This video game is considered to be one of the best of all time, and partly a key factor in the post-1983 crisis reactivation of the video game industry. It became so popular, indeed, that Mario quickly rose to become Nintendo's leading icon, and one of the world's best-known video game characters.
The huge success of Super Mario Bros. led to several remakes, animated series, TV shows, and even movies. Among the best known, we can highlight the 1986 animated film, which was recently restored in 4K, and the 1993 live action, starring John Leguizamo and Bob Hoskins, a production that was not very well received at the time of its release. In 2018, however, Nintendo and Ilumination announced a new Super Mario Bros. movie, surprising and delighting the fans. The cast of this upcoming production is made up of Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Day, Jack Black, Keegan-Michael Key, and Seth Rogen, among others, although choosing Pratt as the voice of Mario led to some audience criticism and backlash.
While the film's premiere was announced for December 21, 2022, it has been delayed to Easter 2023. As we wait for the premiere, let's take a look back at some of the cast members' careers, and their most important roles to date.
Chris Pratt
Chris Pratt will be heading the production as the voice of Mario. The actor who rose to notoriety through his role in Parks and Recreation, and has since had a wealth of experience leading casts. Among his most notable roles are Star-Lord, also known as Peter Quill, in the Guardians of the Galaxy films and Emmet Brickowski in The Lego Movie and its sequel, all of which became box office hits. By 2015, Pratt additionally took on the role of Owen Grady for Jurassic World, the fourth installment of the Jurassic Park franchise, reprising the role for the sequels in 2018 and 2022.
Anya Taylor-Joy
By 2021, Anya Taylor-Joy was listed by TIME magazine as one of the emerging leaders who are shaping the future, and when considering her recent projects, we can easily agree with them. The actress, who made a brilliant film debut in 2015 in the horror movie The Witch, kept herself very busy the last few years by taking part in productions that turned into blockbuster hits. Among her most important projects, it is worth mentioning her leading role in the Netflix miniseries The Queen's Gambit, which earned her, among other awards, a Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award, as well as her role as Gina Gray from season five of Peaky Blinders. In the upcoming Super Mario Bros. movie, she will voice Princess Peach.
Charlie Day
Charlie Day is set to play Luigi in the film. The actor, writer, and producer is best known for his role as Charlie Kelly in the sitcom It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, a show that started in 2005 and has been running for 15 seasons. Besides his work in television, Day has ventured into the movie industry, taking part in films such as Horrible Bosses, Monsters University, and The Lego Movie. He was also the mastermind behind the comedy series Mythic Quest alongside Megan Ganz and Rob McElhenney.
Jack Black
Actor, comedian, musician, and songwriter Jack Black is already a familiar face in the comedic genre, with some of his best-known films being School of Rock and Bernie, both of which earned him Golden Globe nominations, Shallow Hal, The Holiday, and Kung Fu Panda, as well as his role in the films Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle and Jumanji: The Next Level. Apart from his work as an actor, Black is the lead singer of Tenacious D, a band he co-founded with Kyle Gass, and whose success led to the release of four albums, a TV series, and a movie. In Super Mario Bros., Black will portray Bowser.
Keegan-Michael Key
Keegan-Michael Key, who will voice Toad in the film, played smaller roles in hit series such as Parks and Recreation and Pitch Perfect 2, and also lent his voice to several children's characters in productions such as Hotel Transylvania 2 & 3, The Angry Birds Movie, Toy Story 4, and The Lion King. Having created and starred alongside Jordan Peele in Comedy Central's Key & Peele, which ran for five seasons, he reprised his duo with Peele in 2016 in the comedy-action film Keanu.
Seth Rogen
Seth Rogen was chosen to portray the iconic Donkey Kong, but this is not his first time lending his voice for animated films: Rogen took part in hits such as Shrek the Third, Horton Hears a Who!, Kung Fu Panda, Monsters vs. Aliens, and the 2019 remake of The Lion King, among others. Some other well-known films that form part of his portfolio include 50/50, Steve Jobs, Knocked Up, and The 40-Year-Old Virgin. Over the course of his career, Rogen has also taken on directing, producing and screenwriting roles in a number of projects, such as This is the End, Superbad, and Pineapple Express.
Fred Armisen
Fred Armisen is a star who has contributed greatly to comedy over the years, contributing to the creation of series such as Portlandia, Documentary Now!, and Moonbase 8. Among his most memorable roles in TV shows are Robert Durst in The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and Mlepnos in Brooklyn Nine-Nine, while in movies he was featured in Band Aid, Eurotrip, and Easy A. In Super Mario Bros., the co-creator of the ThunderAnt website, a compilation of his comedy sketches along with his comedy partner Carrie Brownstein, will voice Cranky Kong.
Kevin Michael Richardson
Kevin Michael Richardson was chosen to play Kamek in the film, which adds yet another project to his repertoire of films featuring his deep, distinctive voice for all kinds of characters. While Richardson has appeared in a number of movies and series, Richardson is best known for his work as a voice actor, participating in hits such as Mortal Kombat, in which he voiced Goro, Lilo & Stitch, The Matrix Revolutions, Trolls World Tour, and The Wild Thornberrys Movie.
Sebastian Maniscalco
Stand-up comedian and actor Sebastian Maniscalco boasts five comedy specials to his credit, yet he still tried his hand as an actor, taking part in a number of television and film productions. Among his most outstanding performances is his role as Crazy Joe in The Irishman, as well as his parts in Green Book and Cruise. In addition, he was one of the comedians featured in Vince Vaughn's Wild West Comedy Show: 30 Days & 30 Nights - Hollywood to the Heartland, the documentary film directed by Ari Sandel. In Super Mario Bros., Maniscalco will voice Foreman Spike.