"The Super Mario Bros. Movie broke several records, including being the highest-grossing video game film and Illumination's highest-grossing movie. Despite its critical failure, the potential sequel could break even more box office records for the Mario franchise."
The Super Mario Bros. Movie is one of the biggest films of 2023, but it is not the first video game adaptation that has broken box office records. Mario has consistently produced high-quality movie adaptations, proving why the video game franchise is one of the best at producing movie adaptations.
The 2023 movie holds several impressive records, including the biggest worldwide opening weekend for an animated film with $375.6 million, the first video game movie to reach over $1 billion, and Illumination's highest-grossing film to date ($1.159 billion). Additionally, the Mario adaptation became the second-highest-grossing animated film of all time, while the third-highest-grossing animated film was also a success. Furthermore, following its theatrical release, Netflix added "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" to its library, where it continues to generate significant revenue and maintain a strong position in the charts.
Super Mario Bros.: The Movie (1993) is a PG-rated action-adventure comedy loosely based on the video game series of the same name. It depicts the iconic brotherly duo of Mario and Luigi facing off against the evil President Koopa, who attempts to kidnap their beloved girlfriend, an archeology student named Daisy.
One of the first video game film adaptations, "Super Mario Bros.: The Movie," proved why the franchise holds the title of the leading video game film producer 20 years before "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" broke records.
Super Mario Bros.: The Movie grossed over $1 billion at the worldwide box office against a $42-48 million budget, making it the highest-grossing video game adaptation in history. Despite its struggles in the grand scheme of cinema, the 1993 film became the first in the franchise to surpass $1 billion, and its sequel, "Street Fighter," released a year later, held the record for the highest-grossing video game adaptation with over $99.4 million. However, 19 years later, the Mario franchise reclaimed the top spot with "The Super Mario Bros. Movie," which grossed over $1 billion worldwide, significantly surpassing the previous record holder, "Pokémon Detective Pikachu," which had grossed $450.1 million in 2019.
Nintendo's Mario series was not the first franchise to hold the number one spot on the highest-grossing movies based on video games list on two separate occasions. Pokémon, another property owned by Nintendo, achieved this significant feat once in 1998 with the release of the film Pokémon: The First Movie.Twenty-one years after Pokémon: The First Movie broke the record for the highest-grossing video game movie (and was surpassed by other films that followed), Pokémon Detective Pikachu reclaimed the top spot for Pokémon with $450.1 million. While only 21 years passed between the two projects, it was 30 years before the Super Mario Bros. Movie broke the record for the second time. Super Mario Bros.: The Movie premiered in 1993, while Nintendo released The Super Mario Bros. Movie in 2023.Given that the previous record holder for the highest-grossing video game movie adaptation of all time was Pokémon Detective Pikachu with $450.1 million, it will be extremely difficult for any film to surpass The Super Mario Bros. Movie's $1.362 billion box office. However, if any project can achieve this feat, it will solidify the Mario franchise's standing as a top-grossing film series. Following the success of the 2023 animated adventure comedy film, Nintendo has expressed interest in developing sequels and spinoffs. While the studio has yet to confirm any additional projects, a sequel is inevitable, and it has the potential to surpass the first movie's box office and break another record.If and when Nintendo releases The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2, and it grosses over $1.362 billion at the box office, Mario would become the first video game franchise to hold the top spot on the highest-grossing video game films list on three consecutive occasions.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie is an animated comedy-adventure that features the characters from the Super Mario Bros. video game series. The movie is directed by Teen Titans Go! collaborators Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic and stars Chris Pratt, Charlie Day, Jack Black, Anya Taylor-Joy, Keegan Michael Key, and Seth Rogen. The movie is set in the Mushroom Kingdom and beyond and pits the characters in an all-new adventure.