The Super Mario Bros. Movie Smashed The Box Office Record For A Video Game Movie - And That's Just The Start

Nintendo has been the most recognizable name in gaming pretty much ever since the NES brought console gaming home in a bigger-than-ever way in the '80s. Now, all these years later, the house that Mario built has finally conquered the box office, thanks to that plumber's good name. "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" not only topped the charts this past weekend, but it absolutely smashed records on its way to the top. In short, the movie obliterated expectations and has offered Nintendo a path to conquer the big screen as well as the screen in your living room for the foreseeable future.

Per Box Office Mojo, "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" opened to $146.3 million over its first three-day weekend, but had a monster $204.6 million five-day Easter debut, thanks to its early rollout on Wednesday. Analysts were projecting an opening in the neighborhood of $150 million come Monday morning, and even that would have been huge for Illumination's $100 million-budgeted animated feature. Instead, we're looking at one of the biggest openings ever. Period.

"Mario" now owns the record for a five-day opening, topping "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" ($200 million). Now, let's be clear, the biggest opening weekend of all-time still belongs to "Avengers: Endgame" ($357 million), but for a Wednesday-Sunday stretch? Universal and Illumination get to carry that crown. The animated Nintendo adaptation is also by far the biggest opening of 2023, overtaking "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania" ($106 million). Most impressive? "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" is already the second-biggest movie of 2023 overall, just behind "Quantumania" ($473 million), which it will pass any day now.

That's all just the tip of the iceberg. It's by far the biggest opening ever for a video game movie, overtaking "Sonic the Hedgehog 2" ($72 million), and the second-biggest opening weekend for an animated movie, sitting just behind "Incredibles 2" ($182 million). It was also, by far, the biggest global opening for an animated movie at $377.6 million, which includes $173 million from overseas. However, that was over a five-day stretch. "Frozen II" ($228 million) still holds the best international debut ever for an animated film. Without making anyone's mind go numb with records, this is an absolute win beyond what nearly anyone predicted.

What's fascinating about it is that there was a great deal of conversation online — largely amongst older, nostalgic fans — about the perceived quality of the film, which was directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic. It didn't matter. The 56% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes didn't matter. What mattered? The 96% audience score and the A Cinemascore. General audiences like Chris Pratt a lot, so his casting as Mario worked here. Word of mouth is good and it will continue to be good. Not to get too ahead of things here, but there is seemingly nothing standing between this movie and hitting $1 billion at the box office before its run is over.

That likely means we're getting a sequel (which the film absolutely sets up), if not a whole lot more. Nintendo has a lot of properties that could lend themselves to animation, and if conversations for a larger partnership with Universal and Illumination aren't happening already, they will be very, very soon.

Another key thing not to be overlooked is that audiences were downright starved for family-friendly movies. That's part of the reason that "Puss in Boots: The Last Wish" had the incredible run it had on its way to $480 million globally. The first four months of 2023 were devoid of a big theatrical animated film. Sure, the "Mario" branding and Nintendo's good name went a long way, but Illumination has demonstrated time and time again they know how to tap into this market very well.

Disney lost a lot of ground in the theatrical animation space during the pandemic, and it now seems crystal clear that Universal — between DreamWorks and Illumination — is the new unquestioned king of that space. It also doesn't hurt that Universal has been comparatively thrifty. Disney and Pixar's "Lightyear" cost $200 million to produce and tanked. "Mario" cost $100 million, while Illumination's "Minions: The Rise of Gru" cost $90 million (en route to $939 million globally). That's not to be overlooked.

Between "The Rise of Gru," "Sing 2," "The Last Wish," and even "The Bad Guys," Universal has been keeping theatrical animation alive in a big way. They are eating Disney's lunch and audiences are thanking them for it with their hard-earned money. Sure, families can absolutely watch movies at home but it's crystal clear that the desire to return to theaters is back and very strong. Universal is filling that void and being rewarded handsomely for doing so. The question is: can Disney get back in the game with upcoming films like "Elemental?" Or did bombs like "Lightyear" and "Strange World" set them back in a more significant way? We shall see. For now, Illumination gets to live large and Nintendo is poised to be a big part of their future.

Elsewhere, "John Wick: Chapter 4" continued its good run, coming in second with $14.6 million. It dropped just 48.5%, which is outstanding considering the competition. The action flick has now earned $269 million globally. Sure, that $100 million budget still looms large, but it will at least cross $300 million and will be a win for Lionsgate. Last week's champion, "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves," didn't fare so well. The fantasy flick dropped 61% with a $14.5 million take, which is really bad news for a film that cost $150 million. It sits at $124 million worldwide and, sad to say, it's going to go down as a financial disappointment for Paramount.

At number four was Ben Affleck's "Air," the biopic about how Nike's Air Jordans came to be. Thanks to stellar reviews (read ours right here), the adult-focused film managed to not get buried, taking in $14.46 million. It very nearly slipped into the three spot, which is impressive. Over the five-day stretch, it pulled in $20 million, which was above expectations. Amazon Studios financed the $90 million film and originally, it was more of a streaming play. But the wide theatrical release could prove to be a win for them, even if it doesn't fully turn a profit in its theatrical run. It will absolutely boost the movie's profile for Prime Video and, potentially, for an Oscar run later this year.

Rounding out the top five was "Scream VI" with $3.31 million. With that, it now stands at $103.8 million domestic, making it the highest-grossing "Scream" movie in North America, overtaking the original ($103 million). Globally, the sixth installment has earned $161.6 million. Expect "Scream 7" to be announced any day now.

Looking ahead, we've got a pretty crowded weekend in front of us with Nic Cage's Dracula flick "Renfield," Russell Crowe's "The Pope's Exorcist," the sports drama "Sweetwater," and Toni Collette's "Mafia Mama" all entering the fold. None of them have a strong shot at taking the crown, which will make things all the more interesting.

Top 10 movies at the box office for April 7 — 9, 2023:

1. "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" — $146.3 million

2. "John Wick: Chapter 4" — $14.6 million

3. "Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" — $14.5 million

4. "Air" — $14.46 million

5. "Scream VI" — $3.31 million

6. "His Only Son" — $3.25 million

7. "Creed III" — $2.81 million

8. "Shazam! Fury of the Gods" — $1.6 million

9. "Paint" — $750,000

10. "A Thousand and One" — $600,000