Super Mario’s double-billion hit sparks Nintendo’s bigger movie push
Fresh off two smash-hit Super Mario movies, Nintendo wants to beef up its film slate — and it’s teasing a motive that isn’t just the box office.
Nintendo, fresh off the runaway success of two Super Mario films (both big-money spinners), isn’t slowing down on the movie front. They’ve quietly dropped word that more cinematic projects are in the works. If you thought the Mushroom Kingdom was the end of it, think again: Nintendo’s clearly got plans for its other famous faces.
Nintendo ended its investor report with: ‘Going forward, we will take a variety of approaches to continually create contact points with Nintendo characters all over the world.’
Mario’s Box Office Magic
To put all this in perspective: the first Super Mario Bros. Movie didn’t just rake in cash, it demolished box office records, eventually hitting a staggering $1.36 billion in ticket sales globally—making it the highest-grossing video game film ever (for now, anyway). Not satisfied with just the one, Nintendo rolled out the sequel—The Super Mario Galaxy Movie—which managed a not-too-shabby $1.01 billion worldwide.
The company stated in its latest financial report: ‘We believe that our initiatives in movies and videos can transcend the boundaries of the dedicated video game platform business and provide opportunities for people all over the world to become aware of Nintendo characters. In particular, it serves as an opportunity for consumers in regions where dedicated video game platforms are not yet widely adopted to experience Nintendo content for the first time.’
Nintendo isn’t being subtle about what’s behind this renewed push: yes, the films make mountains of cash, but it’s just as much about getting Mario, Zelda and company in front of audiences who might never touch a Switch or classic Game Boy. The films are basically giant, animated adverts, and—judging by the numbers—very effective ones.
- The Super Mario Bros. Movie wrapped with $1.36 billion at the worldwide box office, the biggest money-maker for any video game adaptation.
- The follow-up, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, cleared $1.01 billion globally.
And if you think Nintendo will rest on its gold coins, think again. We already know there’s a live-action Legend of Zelda adaptation in development, reportedly aiming for a cinema release on 30 April 2027. That’s a tight turnaround for a film of that size, so expect every Nintendo announcement—and probably every leak—to get dissected by fans over the next couple of years.