Nintendo confirms next installment in Super Mario Bros. film franchise

Nintendo has announced the next installment in the Super Mario film franchise with Illumination on Mario Day, March 10.

It’s unclear which characters the film will focus on, as Nintendo aren’t calling the film a sequel to the 2023 hit film ‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie.’

Both companies did announce a release date of April 3, 2026, and other territories throughout April.

Chris Meledandri, founder and CEO of Illumination, and Shigeru Miyamoto, representative director and fellow of Nintendo will produce the film.

Both companies worked on the 2023 film ‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie’ which had a total gross of more than $1.3 billion and was the second highest-grossing film of the year.

Aaron Harvath and Michael Jelenic will return to direct, and Matthew Fogel will return to write.

Universal Pictures and Nintendo will co-finance the film and will be distributed globally by Universal Pictures.

Meledandri and Miyamoto announced the development of the latest movie in a joint video.

“It’ll have a bright and fun story,” Miyamoto said. “This time we’re thinking about broadening Mario’s world further.”

Miyamoto at more to come. “We’ll let you know once we’re at the stage where we’re ready to share more.”

This film is the latest adaptation based on a Nintendo property.

The company’s first venture into the film world started with the 1993 live-action adaptation of Mario, which was critically panned and hated by audiences.

2023’s ‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie’ was their return to adaptations, and after the immense success of the film Nintendo announced a live-action film based on ‘The Legend of Zelda’ is in the works with Sony Pictures.

Illumination has made several high-profile animated films and franchises, such as ‘Despicable Me,’ ‘Sing,’ and the latest film ‘Migration.’