Chris Pratt and Anya Taylor-Joy are to voice characters in a new animated film based on the world of Super Mario Bros.
Guardians Of The Galaxy star Pratt will voice the classic Nintendo character Mario, while Taylor-Joy, known for The Queen’s Gambit, will bring Princess Peach to life.
The film is due to be released worldwide in late 2022.
Ta-da! Mario will jump into the world of motion pictures holiday 2022! Check out some of the key cast members who’ll be voicing Mario and his friends in the movie, including @prattprattpratt, @jackblack, @sethrogen and more. pic.twitter.com/dsJ0BguQyE
— Nintendo UK (@NintendoUK) September 23, 2021
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Charlie Day will play Mario’s brother Luigi, and supervillain Bowser will be voiced by Jack Black.
Also taking on the classic characters are Seth Rogen as Donkey Kong, Keegan-Michael Key as Toad, Fred Armisen as Cranky Kong, Kevin Michael Richardson as Kamek, and Sebastian Maniscalco as Spike.
Super Mario Bros began as an arcade game and has been adapted throughout the years for every major Nintendo video game console.
An anime film based on the video game was produced in 1986 – titled Super Mario Bros: The Great Mission To Rescue Princess Peach! – and a live-action film was produced in 1993.
The new animated film will be produced by Chris Meledandri of Illumination and Shigeru Miyamoto of Nintendo, and directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic, who previously collaborated on the animated series Teen Titans Go! and the film Teen Titans Go! To The Movies.
Chris Pratt as Mario
Anya Taylor-Joy as Peach
Charlie Day as Luigi
Jack Black as Bowser
Keegan-Michael Key as Toad
Seth Rogen as Donkey Kong
Fred Armisen as Cranky Kong
Kevin Michael Richardson as Kamek
Sebastian Maniscalco as Spike
Surprise cameos from Charles Martinet— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) September 23, 2021
Matthew Fogel, who worked on The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part and the upcoming film Minions: The Rise Of Gru, will write the screenplay.
Shigeru Miyamoto, representative director at Nintendo, said: “We are collaborating with Chris and his experienced team to not just create a character-licensed film, but a new piece of entertainment which brings Super Mario Bros to life on the screen, and allows everyone to enjoy whether or not they know about the game.
“The production so far is constructive and going very well, and both parties are learning a lot from each other.
“We humbly ask that fans wait just a little longer for the premiere, and we hope they look forward to seeing the unique characters from Super Mario Bros on the big screen.”
Mr Meledandri, Illumination’s founder and chief executive and outside director of Nintendo, added: “Mario and Luigi are two of the most beloved heroes in all of popular culture, and we are honoured to have the unique opportunity to work so closely with Shigeru Miyamoto and the widely imaginative team at Nintendo to bring these characters to life in an animated movie, unlike any film Illumination has made to date.”
