While the first trailer for The Super Mario Bros. Movie gave us some things to be excited about, including Jack Black’s take on Bowser, it didn’t reveal much of the movie’s history. That all changed with yesterday's trailer, which not only explains how Mario (voiced by Chris Pratt) ends up in the Mushroom Kingdom but confirms Illumination’s animated feature will make reference to the whole videogame history of the Super Mario franchise. And that includes going back to Jumpman’s roots and making Donkey Kong (voiced by Seth Rogen) and his family part of his origin story. The trailer also gives us the first taste of Anya Taylor-Joy's delicious take on Princess Peach, reveals how the movie will pay homage to classic 2D Mario levels, and even have the time to fit in a kart racing. There’s a lot to unpack here, so we will break the new trailer down, frame by frame.
Mario Meets Donkey Kong
The trailer takes us to a colosseum in what seems to be Kong territory, where Mario needs to face DK himself. That’s a direct reference to 1981’s Donkey Kong, the arcade game that introduced both characters to the world. In Donkey Kong, players controlled a mustachioed hero that had to climb a tower and jump over obstacles like barrels to save Pauline, a woman who Donkey Kong had kidnaped in a parody of King Kong. Mario didn’t even have a name in that first game, known as Jumpman due to his abilities. We don’t know yet if Pauline is part of the movie’s story and if Donkey Kong will visit New Kong City. Still, the arena mimics the arcade game, with red scaffolding, ladders, barrels the monkey can throw at his enemies, and even elevated platforms where the former villain can stand his ground.
While it seems Mario and Donkey Kong are engaged in a friendly competition, maybe part of the plumber’s training before he can take down Bowser, that doesn’t mean the primate will take easy on the hero. Donkey Kong is still a force of nature, easily pinning Mario to the ground and slapping the life out of his mustache.
During the arena scene, we get the first glimpse of Cranky Kong (voiced by Fred Armisen), the eldest member of the Kong family. Cranky seems amused as Donkey easily wins the fight against Mario, but Toad (voiced by Keegan-Michael Key) and Peach are horrified at the scene. The fact the leader of the Kong Country and the Mushroom Kingdom are watching the duel side by side is another indication the competition is somehow friendly.
Bowser and His Minions Take on Luigi
While the Mushroom Kingdom and the adjacent lands have plenty of reasons to stop Bowser, it looks like Mario will have a personal motivation to become a hero. That’s because Bowser will kidnap Luigi (voiced by Charlie Day) at some point. Day’s impression of Luigi also includes the cowardly undertones introduced in the Luigi’s Mansion franchise, which helps the former Green Mario stand out as his own character.
In a blink-and-you-might-miss moment, we see that Bowser’s army is composed of many of Mario's classic enemies. Of course, there are Koopa Troopas everywhere. However, we can also see Goombas, Bomb-Ombs, Shy Guys, Piranha Plants, Swoops, and even Snifits.
The Mushroom Kingdom is in Trouble (Surprise, Surprise)
Illumination’s animated movie will respect Mario and Luigi’s humble origins by keeping their plumbing background. Due to the brothers messing around with pipes, they will get transported to the Mushroom Kingdom, where they’ll become heroes. Mario and Luigi might come from our world, however, since the Kongs are heavily involved with The Super Mario Bros. Movie, maybe the mustachioed heroes will come from the fictional New Donkey City, where Pauline is the mayor.
It seems like Bowser’s castle is airborne in The Super Mario Bros. Movie. That takes us back to the Nintendo 64 when Bowser made his castle fly for the first time in Paper Mario. Since then, Bowser’s flying castle has been a recurring sight in the franchise, allowing the Koopa King to invade other kingdoms with all his might.
Inside Peach’s Castle, we see a map showing how Bowser is destroying nearby lands. There’s a desert world, made famous by Super Mario Bros. 3 on the Super Nintendo, what looks like a version of Kong Country, and even Yoshi’s Island close to the Mushroom Kingdom. Unfortunately, the icy kingdom of penguins has already fallen to King Koopa’s army, as the once-blue land is covered by darkness and fire.
Princess Peach is Ready to Fight Back
The throne room of Peach’s Castle also seems to pay homage to Super Mario 64, the game that let us roam freely through the castle while we looked for hidden levels inside stain-glassed windows. In the game, Peach’s stained-glass image ends up being the cage where Bowser locks the princess with the power of the stars. The image made a comeback recently in Super Mario Odyssey too, where there’s an improved version of Peach’s Castle that’s also inspired by Super Mario 64.
While Peach is mostly a helpless victim in Mario’s gaming history, in the last years, she has become a player character in multiple titles and surpassed the one-dimension trait of “damsel in distress.” The movie will expand on this tradition, making Peach stand herself against Bowser's corruption.
Classic Mario Adventuring
At their core, Mario games are about jumping through levels filled with blocks and dangers. The Super Mario Bros. Movie found the perfect way to homage to this tradition by featuring gauntlets that look just like regular levels but are actually interactive courses Peach will use to train Mario and help him develop his jumping abilities.
After Mario masters Peach’s courses, he’ll have to break into Bowser’s castle, where the danger is real. He’ll also be attacked by another classic Mario enemy, a Bullet Bill.
While Cheep Cheeps are not under Bowser’s services, they are still a menace, jumping on anyone who dares to cross the bridges that rest over their rivers. In the trailer, Mario gets a close encounter with a Cheep Cheep, teasing that other enemies might also show up in Mushroom Kingdom’s natural landscapes.
First showing up in Super Mario Bros. 3, the Tanooki Suit is an upgrade that allows Mario to glide. In the game, you get the suit by consuming a Super Leaf, one of the many weapons in Mario’s arsenal.
Another classic power-up in the trailer is the Fire Flower, which allows whoever touches it to shoot fireballs with their hands. In the trailer, Peach is the one to grab the upgrade, which also changes her dress exactly like in Super Mario 3D World and every multiplayer Mario game that was released since then.
The trailer also takes us to Yoshi’s Island, where a herd of Yoshis is running from an unseen danger. There are multiple Yoshis with different colors, but curiously enough, we don’t see a Green Yoshi, Mario's usual ally. Maybe they are making the Green Yoshi unique to make him stand out from the rest of the herd.
In the trailer, we see Mario and Luigi riding interdimensional streams. Looking closely, we can see each stream begins and ends with a Warp Pipe. That explains why Mario can be teleported to different lands and dimensions by going into a pipe, which is not unlike how these objects work in some games.
Mario Karting on the Rainbow Road
There is no Mario Kart course more famous than the Rainbow Road, frequently used as the last challenge of the Special Cup. The Rainbow Road is featured in ALL Mario Kart games, which explains why it’s so easily recognizable. It’s thrilling to see that The Super Mario Bros. Movie is going beyond the main line of Mario games to build its story, and since Mario Kart is such an iconic franchise, bringing the Rainbow Road is the best way to honor it.
It looks like Mario will lead a kart attack in The Super Mario Bros. Movie. While driving on the Rainbow Road, Mario is closely followed by Peach, Toad, and an army of Kongs. We have no idea how this will fit with the war-like conflict between the Mushroom Kingdom and Bowser, but we are surely excited to see how the mad race will play out.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie comes out of a warp pipe and into theaters on April 7, 2023.