You won’t believe what’s been happening at the box office lately! Illumination, the animation studio behind the Despicable Me franchise, has just released their latest flick based on the popular video game series The Super Mario Bros. And guess what? Despite receiving some pretty harsh reviews, the Super Mario movie beats Detective Pikachu and is crushing it at the box office! The movie hit theaters just last week and it’s already the highest-grossing animated movie ever. It even beat out Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice to become the Easter Monday box office champion, and it’s showing no signs of slowing down.
Variety reports that the movie has now broken yet another record by surpassing Detective Pikachu, Sonic the Hedgehog, and other animated movies to become the highest-grossing video game film of all time, with over $508 million at the box office! But what’s the movie all about, you ask? Well, it features a star-studded cast including Chris Pratt, Charlie Day, Anya Taylor-Joy, Keegan-Michael Key, and Jack Black, just to name a few. Seth Rogen also lends his voice to the film as Donkey Kong, a character he wanted to portray in his own way.
“I was very clear, I don’t do voices. And if you want me to be in this movie, it’s gonna sound like me and that’s it,” Rogen recently shared. “And that was the beginning and end of that conversation. I was like, ‘If you want Donkey Kong to sound a lot like me, I’m your guy.'” Rogen’s interpretation of Donkey Kong is one where the character hates Mario, which is something that’s been present in the games as well. He said that this adversarial relationship was the root of the character, and he played off the game’s mythology to develop his performance.
In addition to the success of the movie, it’s also worth noting that it marks a new era for the Super Mario Bros. franchise. With Nintendo recently celebrating the 35th anniversary of the original Super Mario Bros. game, they’ve been making moves to expand the franchise beyond just video games. They’ve released a bunch of new merchandise, including Lego sets and clothing, and even announced that they’ll be opening a Super Mario Bros. theme park at Universal Studios Japan.
It’s clear that there’s still a huge audience for Super Mario Bros. and it’ll be exciting to see where the franchise goes from here. Whether you’re a diehard fan or just someone who enjoys a good animated movie, The Super Mario Bros. Movie is definitely worth checking out. It’s currently only in theaters, so gather your friends and family and head on over for a fun time at the movies!
Follow us on Facebook, Instagram & Twitter for more content.
Also Watch: