The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is yet another box office success for Nintendo and Universal’s Illumination, becoming the biggest theatrical debut of the year in the United States. According to NBC’s estimates, the film earned $131.7 million in the first three days, rising to $190.8 million in the first five days. Internationally, the movie also earned an estimated $182.4 million (including previews), bringing the total earnings to around $372 million.
It narrowly failed to surpass its predecessor, though. The Super Mario Bros. Movie had earned $204 million domestically and $377 million worldwide. Still, there’s more than reason enough to celebrate for everyone involved. Jim Orr, President of Domestic Theatrical Distribution for Universal Pictures, said in a statement:
This extraordinary weekend underscores the amazing partnership between Nintendo and Illumination, and the enduring strength of Mario and his pals. ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ feels bigger and more ambitious, with audiences clearly embracing this next evolution of their world. Also exciting to note that this is Chris Meledandri’s 16th movie in 16 years, a period of extraordinary success that continues again this summer with another event title.
Nintendo itself heavily promoted the film adaptation with two Nintendo Direct presentations.
Unsurprisingly, movie critics weren’t that excited about The Super Mario Galaxy Movie. On Rotten Tomatoes, it stands at just 42%, but the Audience Score is at 89%. The cast includes many renowned actors, including:
- Chris Pratt as Mario: an Italian-American plumber originally from Brooklyn.
- Anya Taylor-Joy as Princess Peach: the ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom and the long-lost younger sister of Rosalina.
- Charlie Day as Luigi: Mario’s timid younger twin brother.
- Jack Black as Bowser: the King of the Koopas.
- Keegan-Michael Key as Toad: an anthropomorphic mushroom from the Mushroom Kingdom.
- Benny Safdie as Bowser Jr.: Bowser’s son and the Prince of the Koopas.
- Donald Glover as Yoshi: a friendly green dinosaur befriended by Mario and Luigi.
- Glen Powell as Fox McCloud: a red fox mercenary and space pilot, as well as the protagonist of the Star Fox series.
- Brie Larson as Princess Rosalina: Peach’s long-lost older sister, a princess from outer space, and the adoptive mother of the Lumas.
Nintendo already has another huge movie in production, the long-awaited The Legend of Zelda adaptation, which will be a live action film directed by Wes Ball and featuring Benjamin Evan Ainsworth as Link and Bo Bragason as Princess Zelda.
About the author: With over two decades of experience in gaming journalism, Alessio Palumbo has led the gaming vertical at Wccftech since August 2015. He started working at a young age for Italian websites like Everyeye.it, Gamestar.it, Nextgame.it, and Multiplayer.it before kickstarting the indie English-language publication Worlds Factory as its founder and Editor in Chief.
In the last decade, he has coordinated the overall output of Wccftech’s gaming section, managed PR relations, assigned reviews, produced daily news coverage, edited gaming content as needed, and delivered game reviews.
Arguably, his trademark content is the long series of exclusive developer interviews that have been cited by Wikipedia and by the biggest news media and gaming publications.
His passion for technology also makes him knowledgeable when it comes to gaming hardware and tech. His favorite genres include RPGs, MMORPGs, and action/adventure games.
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