Nintendo and Illumination are collaborating on Super Mario Bros 2, a follow-up to 2023’s huge hit animated movie.
Although reviews for last year’s The Super Mario Bros Movie were decidedly mixed, audiences turned up for the film in droves.
The Illumination Entertainment film, made in partnership with Nintendo, would prove to be hugely popular with audiences on its way to grossing $1.3bn at the global box office. That impressive haul meant the film would ultimately become the second highest grossing film of the year, with only Barbie earning more throughout the year.
In the wake of the film’s success, nobody was surprised when Nintendo announced that an adaptation of The Legend Of Zelda – its beloved and long-running fantasy series – was in the works. Rather than go for another animated feature however, The Legend Of Zelda is set to be live action and will be directed by Wes Ball, the helmer of the upcoming Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes.
Now Nintendo looks to be continuing its push for box office dominance, as the company has announced that it will be partnering with Illumination once again for a sequel to The Super Mario Bros Movie.
Other studios will likely be looking at the project’s announced release date of 3rd April 2026 and planning to keep any similar projects well clear as this one will be expected to hoover up a lot of attention and cash upon its release, not least because the first film proved to be so ‘review-proof’.
Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic will return as directors and the animating process will begin imminently as the team is currently storyboarding and creating digital sets.
Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto (the mind behind Mario) announced the project, stating: “This time too, the staff at Illumination and Nintendo are working together. We’re thinking about broadening Mario’s world further, and it’ll have a bright and fun story. We hope you’ll look forward to it!”
Along with Barbie, The Super Mario Bros Movie was one of only two films to break $1bn at the box office last year, while also earning an estimated $75m from premium video on demand sales. Nintendo, Illumination and distributors, Universal will be hoping the sequel can repeat the trick again. We’ll bring you more details on the sequel as they emerge.
