Mario: Is Our Favorite Italian Plumber the Next Big Time Movie … – MovieWeb

The Super Mario Bros. Movie keeps breaking records. Nintendos mascot has surprised everyone, as not even Shigeru Miyamoto, the plumbers creator, expected such box office numbers. The video game character has come a long way, jumping to the number-one spot in the movie business, showing that a beloved IP such as Mario can go far beyond its original media.

Among the many landmarks the Mario movie has achieved, the film competes with Frozen 2 regarding opening weekend box office records. Aside from the economic significance, one thing is clear: Nintendo is telling Disney they can give them a run for their money. Needless to say, this is just the first Illumination/Nintendo movie, and one isolated hit has a long way to go. Yet, Nintendo is working on a series of actions to make Mario the next big-time mascot, exceeding its already unrivaled video game reputation.

Furthermore, despite Disneys undeniable preponderance in the entertainment industry, the company has seen better days in terms of box office, and the recent sudden CEO change suggests some leadership issues. Be that as it may, this might be the start of Mickey Mouses dethroning as the biggest entertainment mascot. Of course, that is if Nintendo continues to play its cards right.

Marios movie and TV history is well known. Despite multiple attempts in the US and Japan to make a relevant cartoon or live-action film that properly depicts the plumbers heroic story, none had the same impact as the recent movie. This led to Nintendo being extremely careful with the Mario media rights for so long.

However, a different approach of the Japanese company can be traced to the last decade. The first significant breakthrough came with the announcement of the Super Nintendo World in Universal Studios Japan. Announced in 2015 and opened in March 2021, this new theme park area was founded under two distinctive decisions. The first one would be bringing the plumbers universe to a real-life set, an interaction that is only reserved for very popular IPs such as Star Wars, Marvel, DreamWorks, and other selected franchises.

This meant Mario not being exclusively a videogame character, as this grants visibility beyond gamers. Plus, it is a sophisticated way of advertising in which anyone who ignored Mario games until now might use a theme park visit as an excuse to join the party.

Related: Super Mario Bros.: Characters We Want to See in Future Movies

The second decision that stood Mario in the mascot wars arena was that Nintendo chose Universal instead of Disney for its theme park development. Again, there may have been some negotiations at some point in the past, but the story goes that Nintendo went with Universal, Disneys long-time theme park rival.

With a life-sized Mario running around a themed land, he and his crew are now in Mickey Mouses territory, greeting guests for photo-ops and creating family memories. The expansion plans have already hit America, with a recently opened Nintendo World on the west coast and an upcoming Floridian counterpart in 2025.

The truth is Mario triumphs in an industry to which Disney contributes but doesnt master. Sure, Mickey is a playable character, and Disney has created its fair share of popular video games that made an impact on the industry. But this doesnt mean that they have the same weight as Nintendo, or its competitors, Sony PlayStation or Microsoft Xbox for that matter.

Disney doesnt own a console nor pays more interest in video games than producing some based on their popular IPs. Ultimately, Disney has used Nintendo (and Sony and Microsoft) as a platform to showcase its franchises, so it cannot compete with Marios popularity.

As Mario slowly invades Mickeys territory, which is movies and TV, the mouse seems uninterested in competing side-by-side with the plumber in the video game terrain. Of course, there are many reasons not to do it, and probably commercial ones are the ones to keep them from creating their own console, but if Mario continues to grow, it might be a decision worth double-checking in the not-so-distant future.

Disneys paramount role in entertainment makes the company pursue leadership in every possible market. If Nintendo becomes a threat to its popularity, it might have to step up in ways it never thought viable before.

Related: The Best Nintendo Adaptations Like Super Mario Bros, Ranked

Its not that simple to dethrone the most famous mouse in the world. A century in the entertainment business has Walts favorite creation alive and well, with many promising new adventures to come and innumerable resources to keep ahead of the competition in mascot popularity.

Still, the future looks bright for Mario. His cinematic and theme-park popularity is on the rise, and his video game reputation is simply second-to-none. Now its a pivotal point for its roster of characters to jump in as well. Disneys domain relies on its rich set of lovable characters and stories that set them apart in the business.

But Nintendo is no stranger to this and has created its own roster of familiar faces and enticing playable adventures that could easily make great films and TV shows.

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Mario: Is Our Favorite Italian Plumber the Next Big Time Movie ... - MovieWeb