Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic, directors of The Super Mario Bros. Movie, have disclosed that they derived inspiration for some fresh characters from Nintendo’s untapped designs.
Illumination and the video game company teamed up for the movie, which stars Chris Pratt as the iconic plumber who defends the Mushroom Kingdom against Bowser’s rage. The film also showcases popular characters from the franchise’s past, such as Luigi, Princess Peach, and Donkey Kong.
Following the successful opening weekend of The Super Mario Bros. Movie, directors Horvath and Jelenic sat down with Polygon to discuss the making of the animated film.
In the interview, they shared that they drew inspiration for some new aspects of Mario’s story from past artwork. Horvath further disclosed that Nintendo gave them the green light to include Mario and Luigi’s extended family in the movie, utilizing designs that the video game company had previously created.
Read the director’s response here –
Nintendo were completely open to it — they were fully on board with this cinematic representation of Mario and knowing that he’s not just going to be a guy who appears from a pipe and says ‘Wahoo!’ and then he’s off on his adventure. We needed to do a little more work to believe that he’s a real guy with a real life and real problems. So they were totally on board with creating this family for Mario.
They did send us character sketches that that they had done years ago that they had never used; Mario’s dad is almost like a one-to-one design adaptation of [Nintendo’s] original Mario’s dad design that they provided us. That was really great to be able to get that in the movie.
Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic
Although The Super Mario Bros. Movie centers on the origins of Mario’s journey in the Mushroom Kingdom, the film also pays homage to various aspects of Nintendo’s larger franchise. The movie introduces numerous characters from games beyond the main series, such as Donkey Kong’s relatives from the 1994 Donkey Kong Country game, and Luma from Super Mario Galaxy.
Additionally, the film incorporates elements of Mario’s gameplay into the world’s design, transforming Coin Boxes into ATMs and the Rainbow World into a portal between kingdoms.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie also pays tribute to Mario’s past appearances on TV and in film. As part of the movie’s promotional material, the theme song from the Super Mario Bros. Super Show, a children’s series from 1989, is used in the film as a song created by Mario and Luigi to advertise their plumbing services within the movie’s universe.
By including various references to Mario’s broader universe and history, The Super Mario Bros. Movie offers a thrilling adventure that honors Nintendo’s legendary character.
For years, Mario has captivated audiences with his thrilling escapades in the Mushroom Kingdom. However, The Super Mario Bros. Movie offers a rare opportunity to delve into the plumber’s life beyond the kingdom’s borders. As a result, fans are likely to be thrilled by the film’s exploration of Mario and Luigi’s family in Brooklyn, as it enriches the movie’s narrative and provides gamers with fresh material.
Moreover, since the family members were based on Nintendo’s previously unused designs, it is evident that the film’s creators took great care to ensure that the new characters seamlessly integrate into Mario’s world.
About The Super Mario Bros. Movie
The Super Mario Bros. Movie is a 2023 American computer-animated adventure film based on Nintendo’s Mario video game franchise. Produced by Illumination, Universal Pictures, and Nintendo, and distributed by Universal.
It was directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic from a screenplay by Matthew Fogel. The ensemble voice cast includes Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Day, Jack Black, Keegan-Michael Key, Seth Rogen, and Fred Armisen.
The film features an origin story for the brothers Mario and Luigi, Italian-American plumbers who are transported to an alternate world and become entangled in a battle between the Mushroom Kingdom, led by Princess Peach, and the Koopas, led by Bowser.
Source: Polygon
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