When Nintendo announced Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Jack Black, and more as the voice cast of The Super Mario Bros. Movie in 2021, eyebrows were raised. Pratt especially received a lot of criticism and many thought he wouldn’t be able to play the character. However, other cast members weren’t left out either and it was alleged that they are taking away jobs from various voice actors. A lot of people thought the movie would fail. However, now the tale is different.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie is slated to have a domestic debut of around $195 million in its opening weekend as per The Hollywood Reporter. The movie starring Pratt as Mario and Taylor-Joy ad Princess Peach has a Rotten Tomatoes critic score of 56% and an audience score of 96%. It wouldn’t have been possible if the actors weren’t dedicated to their roles.
Chris Pratt Talks About Mario And Fan Criticism
The Super Mario Bros. Movie follows Mario (Chris Pratt) and Luigi (Charlie Day) on their adventures in the Mushroom Kingdom. The animated movie was trolled pretty strongly online for hiring Chris Pratt as the voice of the titular character. But in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Pratt revealed that he doesn’t hold any grudges and understands where the fan criticism came from. He said:
“It makes sense, I was pretty nervous when they offered it to me. I thought, ‘Wow, let’s not screw this up.’ That’s where it all comes from, I think. People are passionate about this character and they’ve probably seen some of their favorite IP getting screwed up… I think the movie is fantastic and I think your childhood is firmly intact.”
As for hiring Pratt specifically, director Aaron Horvath said that he loved the actor because of his three qualities. He said, “We wanted to make sure that Mario felt like a real character in this movie… He’s this everyman. He goes to a magic world and becomes this great hero, and Chris Pratt plays that character so well. He’s funny, he’s down-to-earth and he’s also superheroic, so he really checked all of the boxes for us.” As for Anya Taylor-Joy, she wanted her Princess Peach to be the opposite of Pratt’s Mario.
Anya Taylor-Joy Wanted To Flesh Out Princess Peach More
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Anya Taylor-Joy expressed that she wanted Princess Peach to be more than her video game origins. The actress wanted her character to have agency and stand out as a leader. As per the star:
“When I was first approached about playing Princess Peach, I was super excited, super honored, and also slightly terrified because I only wanted to play her if she was a 3D character if she had her own agency, and also she’s not just a princess, she’s a leader.”
She also thanked Nintendo for understanding where she was coming from and being on the same page with her. The actress expressed that she wanted a new generation of kids to grow up with this version of Princess Peach. As per Taylor-Joy:
“I’m so glad that everybody at Nintendo and Illumination, and the directors were up for that because I don’t think I would’ve done it otherwise. And we’ve had so much fun bringing Peach to life. And what I was not expecting was how much of an emotional reaction I would’ve had to seeing the film because the idea that kids are going to grow up with this being the example of what a princess is just feels very cool and very inspiring.”
While critics feel that the film has a shallow plot, a lot of fans of the video games have enjoyed the movie and the nostalgia it provided. They have also praised the voice work of Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Jack Black, and others in the movie.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie is still playing in theaters.
