Photo Illustration by Thomas Levinson/The Daily Beast/Universal Pictures
Video game adaptations are in vogue this spring—and they’re actually … good? HBO’s The Last of Us premiered in January to critical acclaim, convincing naysayers that maybe you can translate the interactive medium to a more passive space. But it’s the long-awaited, The Super Mario Bros. Movie (April 5) that’s both the most anticipated entry into the genre and its biggest test.
The reasons are obvious: Mario is the biggest gaming franchise in the world. Since he first appeared in 1981’s Donkey Kong, the jumping plumber’s appeared in more than 200 games, with nearly one billion copies sold across them all. Nintendo just opened its second theme park attraction dedicated to the Mushroom Kingdom and its characters—that’s the mark of some strong IP.
Unlike The Last of Us, which had prestige drama bonafides to lean on, Mario Bros. had some extra hurdles to cross before it could win over Nintendo diehards. The games have a gigantic fanbase, for one, making it impossible to please everyone. But there’s also the fact that Illumination Entertainment, the American studio best-known for the very annoying Minions movies, was handling it. Despite Minions’ massive success at the box office and stronghold over small children, ironic TikTok teens, and Facebook moms, Illumination was an eyebrow-raising choice for anyone over the age of 12.