Nintendo and Illumination have officially confirmed the next Super Mario Bros. Movie will release on 3 April 2026, following the blockbuster success of the original film. So far, not much is known about the new movie – including whether it will be a sequel or character spin-off – but it’s been confirmed that directors Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic, and writer Matthew Fogel, will return, and that work begins soon.
In a post on Twitter / X, Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto expressed enthusiasm for the upcoming film and how it intends to “broaden” the cinematic Super Mario Bros. universe.
“We are now creating a new animated film based on the world of Super Mario Bros. This film is planned for release in theatres on April 3rd, 2026 in the US and many other markets, and throughout the month of April in other territories,” Miyamoto said.
“We’ll let you know the details once we’re ready to share more. This time too, the staff at Illumination and Nintendo are working together. 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!”
Read: The Super Mario Bros. Movie Review
Based on wording here, it does appear Nintendo will be working more closely with Illumination on this upcoming film, as the studios look to create an expanded universe encompassing Nintendo’s most popular characters.
Early rumours are that characters including Donkey Kong will get their own feature films as part of Nintendo and Illumination’s plans – although at this stage, the nature of this newest project remains unknown. We could see a Donkey Kong spin-off, a true sequel to the Super Mario Bros. Movie, or something else entirely.
For now, we’ll just have to stay tuned to see more. In the meantime, you can check out the other MAR10 Day announcements from Nintendo, which include the release dates for upcoming Nintendo Switch games, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door and Luigi’s Mansion 2 HD, and much more.
