Chris Pratt’s Mario voice in trailer of ‘Super Mario Bros’ ushers in wave of nostalgia

The wait is finally over. The first trailer for Nintendo’s animated Super Mario Bros. movie is out and now we all know what Chris Pratt’s Mario voice sounds like. Alongside Pratt as its central character, the Mario movie boasts a star-studded cast of Mushroom Kingdom characters including Charlie Day as Luigi, Anya Taylor-Joy as Princess Peach, Seth Rogen as Donkey Kong, Jack Black as Bowser, Keegan-Michael Key as Toad, Fred Armisen as Cranky Kong and Sebastian Maniscalco as Spike, Variety reported.

The trailer opens with Bowser and his massive, fiery castle descending upon an ice kingdom. Bowser’s army of Koopa Troopas, led by Spike the Magikoopa, face off against the ice kingdom’s legions of blue penguins, seen in the “Mario” games. However, the penguins’ snowballs are no match for Bowser. He burns down the icy castle and takes control of a “Mario” star power-up. “I finally found it. Now, who’s gonna stop me?” Bowser yells. Enter: everyone’s favourite Italian plumber. In a new scene, Mario flies through a green pipe into the Mushroom Kingdom, bouncing off huge, red mushrooms until he flops on the ground. The Mario theme song twinkles in the background as he awakens to find Toad. “What is this place?” Mario wonders aloud, in a very Pratt-like voice. Toad leads Mario through the valley of gigantic mushrooms, with Princess Peach’s castle looming in the distance. After the credits roll, the trailer ends with Luigi being chased through a spooky forest by a group of Dry Bones.

Sharing his experience voicing Mario, Pratt had earlier told Variety, “I worked really closely with the directors and trying out a few things and landed on something that I’m really proud of and can’t wait for people to see and hear. It’s an animated voiceover narrative. It’s not a live-action movie. I’m not gonna be wearing a plumber suit running all over. I’m providing a voice for an animated character, and it is updated and unlike anything you’ve heard in the ‘Mario’ world before.” Reacting to the trailer, a social media user commented, “Extremely nostalgic.” “It took me to a time when I used to play Mario with my brother. Can’t wait for the film,” another one wrote on Instagram. Super Mario Bros. will arrive in theatres on April 7, 2023.