Illumination and Nintendo will join forces to produce a new animated film based on the world of Super Mario Bros.
The companies previously partnered on last year’s “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” which grossed more than $1.3 billion. It’s unclear what the new film will focus on and the partners are not using the word “sequel.” However, the companies did specify that it will be released in theaters on April 3, 2026 in the U.S. and many additional markets globally with select territories releasing throughout the month of April.
The film will be produced by Chris Meledandri, founder and CEO of Illumination and Shigeru Miyamoto, representative director and fellow of Nintendo and one of the most famous figures in gaming. It will be directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic, who oversaw “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” and written by Matthew Fogel, who wrote the script for that film. The film will be co-financed by Universal Pictures and Nintendo and distributed theatrically worldwide by Universal Pictures.
Illumination is one of the biggest forces in animation, producing hits like the “Despicable Me” series, as well as “Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax,” “Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch” and “The Secret Life of Pets” and “Sing” films. Illumination’s next film is “Despicable Me 4,” which will be released in theaters on July 3, 2024.
Nintendo’s games include “Donkey Kong,” “The Legend of Zelda,” “Metroid” and “Splatoon.” Nintendo has sold more than 5.6 billion video games and over 800 million hardware units globally.
More to come…