Wa-Hoo! Illumination & Nintendo Reveal Super Mario Bros. Movie Sequel for April 2026

Lets-a-go! It was only a matter of time until Nintendo, Illumination Entertainment, and Universal Pictures returned to the Mushroom Kingdom. How could they not once The Super Mario Bros. Movie leveled up with over $1 billion worldwide, making it the highest-grossing video game adaptation of all time?

The sequel — which is currently in active production and slated for a wide theatrical bow on April 3, 2026 — was announced over the weekend in a special Mario Day celebration message from living Nintendo legend Shigeru Miyamoto (creator of Mario, Donkey Kong, and Zelda) and Illumination founder and CEO Chris Meledandri.

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Interestingly, Miyamoto described the project as "a new animated film based on the world of Super Mario Bros.," which implies it may not be a direct follow-up. "The Super Mario Bros. Movie released last spring [and] continues to be watched by many people, including over the holidays and into this year. Thank you all very much."

Meledandri went on to confirm that Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic have returned to direct the feature, now taking shape at Illumination's Paris-based studio. "[They] have been busy at work storyboarding scenes and developing set designs for new environments," he continued. "We start animation soon and rest assured, we'll be obsessing over every detail to get it just right."

Nintendo & Illumination Announce New Super Mario Bros. Movie

What Will The Super Mario Bros. Movie Sequel Be About?

No story details are available at this time, with Miyamoto stating: "We'll let you know once we're at the stage where we're ready to share more. This time, we're thinking about broadening Mario's world further, and it'll have a bright and fun story. We hope you'll look forward to it! That's all for now. Happy Mario Day!"

The first outing centered around the titular siblings — Mario (Chris Pratt) and Luigi (Charlie Day) — who find themselves transported to the wondrous realm of the Mushroom Kingdom while trying to launch their Brooklyn plumbing business. Joining forces with the likes of Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy), Toad (Keegan-Michael Key), and Donkey Kong (Seth Rogen), the brothers set out to defeat the dreaded King Koopa — aka Bowser (Jack Black) — who has stolen a Power Star in the hopes of impressing the princess and gaining her hand in marriage. Fred Armisen (Cranky Kong), Kevin Michael Richardson (Kamek), and Sebastian Maniscalco (Spike) rounded out the ensemble voice cast.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie is now available to own from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.