ILLUMINATION, NINTENDO REVEAL SUPER MARIO BROS. ANIMATED FILM THEATRICAL RELEASE DATE, VOICE CAST

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 24 -- Illumination and Nintendo Co Ltd (Nintendo) have announced their new animated film based on the world of Super Mario Bros. will be released worldwide during the 2022 holiday season.

Universal Pictures will release the film in North America on Dec 21, next year with the release schedule for additional countries and regions to be announced at a future date. The film will be co-financed by Universal Pictures and Nintendo.

In addition, the two companies announced the voice actors for the characters Mario (Chris Pratt), Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy), Luigi (Charlie Day), Bowser (Jack Black), Toad (Keegan-Michael Key), Donkey Kong (Seth Rogen), Cranky Kong (Fred Armisen), Kamek (Kevin Michael Richardson) and Spike (Sebastian Maniscalco).

According to a statement, each voice actor was cast for the ability to capture the unique spirit of their character.

“Mario and Luigi are two of the most beloved heroes in all of popular culture, and we are honoured to have the unique opportunity to work so closely with Shigeru Miyamoto and the widely imaginative team at Nintendo to bring these characters to life in an animated movie, unlike any film Illumination has made to date,” said Illumination’s Founder and CEO, and outside director of Nintendo, Chris Meledandri.

This new animated film will be produced by Meledandri of Illumination and Shigeru Miyamoto of Nintendo, directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic, who previously collaborated on the animated series Teen Titans Go! and the film Teen Titans Go! To the Movies.

The screenplay of the film will be written by Matthew Fogel, whose writing credits include The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part and the upcoming Illumination film Minions: The Rise of Gru.

Illumination is one of the entertainment industry's leading producers of event-animated films. It was honoured by Fast Company as one of the world's most innovative companies.

-- BERNAMA