Production on the new Super Mario Bros movie has been very hush-hush, to the point we don’t even have an official title yet. The animated movie is so secretive, even the cast aren’t fully sure what it’s about. Or at the very least, Charlie Day’s being kept in the dark.
The It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia star is voicing Luigi, Mario’s brother, and so far his scripts have just had his parts. “I know so little about the movie because it’s like the Marvel [Cinematic] Universe,” he told ScreenRant. “They released to me very specific lines, and they call me in and say, ‘Say Mario 7000 different ways and then we’ll pick which one we want’. So I know almost nothing. I’m not in the inner circle of the Nintendo World.”
Some aspects of this are to be expected – animation and voice-overs are often recorded in talent’s homes these days, and having them do it a variety of fashions to find the take they want is not unusual. Only getting your own lines is often a tactic of modern filmmaking, to prevent leaks. Clearly Nintendo is keen to make sure everybody finds out about the film together.
Presumably, the rest of the stacked cast for the family movie are under the same restrictions. Chris Pratt, Anya-Taylor Joy, Seth Rogen, Jack Black, Keegan-Michael Key, and Fred Armisen are joining Day in his voyage to the Mushroom Kingdom.
Besides the actors, we know nothing else about the feature beyond Illumination is producing it, and it’s expected to come out later this year. Right now, the release date is set for December 21, 2022 in the US. We’ll keep you informed on updates – wahoo!