Illumination's The Super Mario Bros. Movie was one of 2023's most successful films. Based on the beloved Nintendo video game franchise, the film set multiple box office records on its way to a $1.3 billion global haul, including the biggest worldwide opening weekend for an animated film and the first film based on a video game to gross over $1 billion.
Given the film's commercial success, we figured a sequel would be in the works, but we never had an official announcement — until today. In celebration of Mario Day, Nintendo and Illumination have officially announced that The Super Mario Bros. Movie sequel is in development with a release date set for April 3, 2026, in the United States and other markets. The film will be released in other territories throughout the month of April.
Original directors Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic are returning for the sequel, which appears to be early in the production process.
"Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic and the very talented artists from Illumination Studios Paris, who brought the Mushroom Kingdom to life in The Super Mario Bros. Movie have been busy at work storyboarding scenes and developing set designs for new environments," Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri revealed in a pre-recorded video. "We start animation soon and rest assured we will be obsessing over every detail to get it just right."
Legendary game director Shigeru Miyamoto — creator of the Mario video game — added that the sequel will broaden Mario's world further, and promised "it'll have a bright and fun story."
The first film wasn't based on any specific Mario game and instead featured plenty of references to the franchise as a whole. The movie followed Italian-American brothers Mario and Luigi on a wild adventure after getting sucked through a Warp Pipe. Separated, Mario lands in the Mushroom Kingdom, ruled by Peach, while Luigi arrives in the Dark Lands, ruled by the evil King Bowser who seeks to marry Peach. With the Mushroom Kingdom threatened by King Bowser, Mario, Princess Peach and more rally together to fight back.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie starred Chris Pratt as the voice of Mario, Charlie Day (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia) as Mario's younger brother, Luigi, Anya Taylor-Joy (The Queen's Gambit) as Princess Peach, Jack Black as King Bowser, Seth Rogen as Donkey Kong, Keegan-Michael Key as Toad, Fred Armisen as Cranky Kong, and Sebastian Maniscalco as Spike. Nintendo didn't announce casting details, but we assume of the original voice cast will return for the sequel.
Shigeru Miyamoto promised more details when the time is right. In the meantime, mark your calendars for April 3, 2026.