Illumination and Nintendo are officially building a shared movie universe centered on Mario and friends. Soon, we could be getting a potential Nintendo Cinematic Universe similar to Marvel, DC, or Legendary’s MonsterVerse.
According to scooper @MyTimeToShineH’s report, Illumination and Nintendo are planning a shared cinematic universe for Mario and friends.
A Donkey Kong movie is already in active development, while Luigi’s Mansion and a Princess Peach spinoff are also in the works. They’re aiming to introduce more Nintendo characters through their own films — all leading up to a massive Super Smash Bros. movie event!
As of now, the rumored films based on popular Nintendo games include Punch-Out!!, Kid Icarus, Yoshi, Star Fox, Luigi’s Mansion, Donkey Kong, F-Zero, Pikmin, and Ice Climber.
In July 2025, Nintendo filed a copyright for an unannounced Donkey Kong movie with Universal Pictures. The filing lists both Nintendo Studios LLC and Universal Pictures as the copyright holders.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie, released in 2023, earned over $1.3 billion worldwide.
Recently, Illumination and Nintendo have announced the title for the sequel to The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which is The Super Mario Galaxy Movie. It is directed by returning filmmakers Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic, from a screenplay by returning screenwriter Matthew Fogel, with Brian Tyler returning to compose the score.
The cast of The Super Mario Galaxy Movie includes Chris Pratt as Mario, Anya Taylor-Joy as Princess Peach, Charlie Day as Luigi, Jack Black as Bowser, Keegan-Michael Key as Toad, and Kevin Michael Richardson as Kamek.
The film will be co-financed by Universal Pictures and Nintendo, and will be released worldwide by Universal Pictures.
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie will be released on April 3, 2026, in the United States and many other global markets, followed by a release in Japan on April 24, 2026, with select territories premiering throughout the month of April.
RELATED: First Plot Details for The Super Mario Galaxy Movie Revealed
