While promoting the new Garfield animated pic, Chris Pratt briefly touched on his past performance as the princess-saving Brooklyn plumber, Mario.
Despite receiving negative reviews from critics, the 2023 animated Super Mario Bros. Movie was an unexpected blockbuster, as it went on to set the record for biggest global opening for an animated movie.
After everything was said and done, the movie made $1.362 billion globally on a meager $100 million production budget. That feat made The Super Mario Bros. Movie the most financially successful film of 2023, according to Deadline Hollywood.
A sequel was officially announced on March 10, 2024, as part of Mario Day celebrations and given an April 3, 2026 release date.
Speaking to Total Film, Pratt teased, "I can't tell you much but I can say that there is another Mario movie coming. It gets me very excited thinking about the world of Mario and Nintendo in general, I think over the next decade we will be seeing lots of stories coming out of that world."
"I was thrilled, honored, and blessed to be part of the first one and moving forward I'm open to doing as much and as little as they want from me. I can't say much but I am just as excited as everyone else."
Additionally, the Super Mario Bros. Movie's box office success has encouraged the normally reserved Nintendo to produce films for other IPs, such as The Legend of Zelda, which is getting a live-action adaptation from filmmaker Wes Ball, who recently launched Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes into theaters.
On those spinoffs, Pratt shared, "We are very excited, it’s a dream come true for me. I grew up playing those games and been a part of those things for a long time - I’ve known Mr. Miyamoto for many years now and I can’t wait."
"That’s all I can really say but I am very aware that people are as anxious as I am to see something on it. I just want to get to work on it, it’s a dream come true."
The Super Mario Bros. Movie Synopsis: Based on the world of Nintendo’s Mario games, the film invites audiences into a vibrant, thrilling new universe unlike any created before in an action-packed, exuberant cinematic comedy event. While working underground to fix a water main, Brooklyn plumbers Mario (Chris Pratt; Jurassic World and The LEGO Movie franchises) and brother Luigi (Charlie Day; It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia) are transported down a mysterious pipe and wander into a magical new world.
But when the brothers are separated, Mario embarks on an epic quest to find Luigi. With the assistance of a Mushroom Kingdom resident Toad (Keegan-Michael Key; The Lion King) and some training from the strong-willed ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom, Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy;The Queen’s Gambit), Mario taps into his own power."