15 Nov – They attempted the big screen before but the Mario brothers were just not cut for live-action stardom. So this time Nintendo is pairing with Illumination Entertainment to make an animated film instead. "Super Mario Bros." will go from video game to animated film once Nintendo closes the deal with the animation studio and Universal Pictures, The Wall Street Journal reports. Currently, the deal is for one movie but depending on the success, there might be more down the line. Nintendo and Illumination have been in talks for more than a year, during which Nintendo has also teamed up with Universal for several theme park attractions based on the Mario Bros. property.
Shigeru Miyamoto, creator of the game, is expected to come on board as producer. This will be the second movie adaptation for the game, the first being the poorly-received 1993 comedy "Super Mario Bros." starring Bob Hoskins as Mario Mario and John Leguizamo as Luigi Mario. The movie's lackluster reception has understandably led to Nintendo being more cautious with lending their characters to the silver screen. However, the upcoming animated film is in good company as Illumination is known for hits such as the "Despicable Me" movies, which spawned their very own "Minion" spinoffs, as well as "Sing" and "The Secret Life Pets", both with sequels releasing in two to three years' time. Aside from "Super Mario Bros.", another Nintendo film adaptation fans can look forward to is the upcoming live-action "Detective Pikachu", helmed by "Goosebumps" director, Rob Letterman.