Meet your new Princess Peach! The Official Trailer for "The Super
Mario Bros. Movie" is finally here, and on top of revealing the Princess's
new voice, it's full of fun "Mario" references, both obvious and obscure.
To kick off the second "Super Mario Bros. Movie" trailer in grand fashion, we see Mario emerge from
a dark tunnel into a gladiatorial arena to face his opponent – Donkey Kong. The two put on their
game faces and charge toward one another as we get a better look at the massive steel beam structure
they're standing on. While it may be odd to see Mario and DK as adversaries these days,
the two gaming icons started out as opponents, and in a similar environment, to boot.
Way back in 1981, Nintendo released the "Donkey Kong" arcade game. It has players control a
little mustachioed man who later became Mario as he attempts to rescue his beloved Pauline,
who has been captured by the titular gorilla. To save her,
Mario must scale level after level of steel beams – much like the ones in the
trailer – while dodging barrels and defending himself against Kong's other forms of attack.
"Donkey Kong! Why would you do that!?"
In 1994, Nintendo brought Donkey Kong back in a big way with "Donkey Kong Country," which actually
starred the grandson of the original Kong. The original, now-elderly arcade star appeared in
"Donkey Kong Country" as Cranky Kong, aka Donkey Kong Sr. In the trailer, an ape who looks a lot
like Cranky is watching the battle, clearly happy to see the young gorilla take Mario down.
All in all, the newest "Super Mario Bros. Movie" trailer is a fast-paced,
blink-and-you'll-miss-it affair that serves as a highlight reel
for the film itself. That means that it doesn't give viewers much time to take
in the animated environments that the movie's heroes and villains inhabit.
Nevertheless, we do get a look at some noteworthy locations
throughout that fans of the "Super Mario" franchise are quite familiar with. First
and foremost are good looks at the Mushroom Kingdom and Bowser's lair,
but they're just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to famous locales.
Thanks to a map that several Toads examine, we see that areas like "Shifting Sand Land" exist
in this version of the "Super Mario" universe. We also see the home of some Cheep Cheeps,
who jump effortlessly over bridges just as they do in their video game appearances.
"Ah! Get it off get it off get it off!"
Speaking of homes, the trailer also offers a brief look at Yoshi's Island, where several Yoshis
run from an unseen entity. Finally, there's the notorious "Mario Kart" track, Rainbow Road, which
our heroes bravely drive on, despite the lack of guardrails — the bane of many a gamer's existence.
One of the many selling points of the new "Super Mario Bros. Movie" teaser is the introduction of
Anya Taylor-Joy's take on Princess Peach. She's noticeably absent from the previous trailer,
so she gets a lot of time to shine in this one. Not only does it appear
as though she won't be kidnapped by Bowser, but she seems to be a strong,
capable leader. Peach makes no bones about her desire to take the fight to Bowser if it means
keeping her kingdom safe, and in doing so, the trailer reveals that she'll wear a few
different outfits that have histories rooted in the "Super Mario" franchise.
It should come as no surprise that, for much of the second "Super Mario Bros. Movie" trailer,
Princess Peach is wearing her most recognizable costume: a pink dress, golden crown,
and white gloves. However, it does change when she picks up the flame of a Fire Flower,
with her attire taking on a white and red motif, a mechanic that countless "Super
Mario" games have employed over the years. Departing far from her traditional look,
Peach is also shown wearing a white and pink jumpsuit with a pink scarf. This
look is practically a direct translation of her "Mario Kart 8" racing costume.
The second "Super Mario Bros. Movie" trailer is worth skimming through for costume changes and
famous locations galore, but one would be remiss not to bring up the countless beloved characters
that make split-second cameos throughout. In Bowser's lair alone, we see a few Bob-ombs,
Shy Guys, Goombas, Hammer Bros., and Piranha Plants among a large crowd of Koopa Troopas.
A Bullet Bill later pops up to give Mario a hard time, much like the aforementioned Cheep Cheeps.
For those hoping to see more familiar faces than those already announced, "The Super Mario Bros.
Movie" more than has you covered. For all of you Kong family fans out there, you'll be delighted to
know that several Kongs pop up in this teaser. In addition to Donkey Kong and Cranky Kong,
you can also see several other Kongs like Diddy and Funky as well. The Rainbow Road
shots toward the end of the trailer are full of characters riding along in their outlandish karts.
When one thinks of the "Super Mario" franchise, a handful of things likely spring to mind. The
characters and landscapes are likely up there, as well as the sounds and music that accompany them.
When it comes to visual elements, Warp Pipes are almost certainly among the first things to come
up. After all, they've been a part of Mario's video game story from the very beginning. Mario
uses them to "warp" around his many quests and even access secret rooms. Therefore, it makes
sense that they'd appear in the upcoming film, and we might know what kind of purpose they serve.
It's heavily implied in both "Super Mario Bros. Movie" trailers so far that
Mario and Luigi aren't from the Mushroom Kingdom or any of the surrounding areas.
"There's a human, has a mustache, just like you."
Especially in Mario's case, he seems lost and pretty overwhelmed by the situation he's in.
The new teaser further fleshes out this idea by including a few shots of Mario and Luigi
tumbling through mysterious, winding lanes that weave in and out of clouds. These paths
lead to green ports that evoke images of Warp Pipes. Could these Warp Pipes be portals to
other worlds that Mario and Luigi plunge into? We'll have to wait and see to know for sure.
Standing side-by-side with Princess Peach in her defense of the Mushroom Kingdom is Toad. The
short, mushroom-headed adventurer is a video game legend who made his debut in 1985's "Super Mario
Bros." In the decades since, he's become a fan favorite the world over, and his appearance has
become iconic. For "The Super Mario Bros. Movie," he seems to maintain his usual ensemble of a blue
and yellow vest with white pants and a red and white mushroom cap, which is definitively not
a hat. However, he also seems to pay homage to another, less well-known Toad character.
As Toad and Peach go out to confront an invading Bowser, we see them each brandish
a weapon of some kind. Peach goes for a spear with two ax blades attached to the top, while
Toad grabs something a bit less intimidating: a frying pan. This is far from an ideal weapon
for battling someone as formidable as Bowser, but it is a fun reference to Super Nintendo
World favorite Chef Toad. Introduced in 2021 with the opening of Super Nintendo World,
the theme park character is the head chef at Kinopio's Café. In most depictions, he's shown
holding a frying pan, hence the connection to the "Super Mario Bros. Movie" version of Toad.
But that's not the only Toad that this version of the character is inspired by. In 2014,
Nintendo released a spin-off game for its popular "Super Mario 3D World" platformer. The new game,
"Captain Toad Treasure Tracker" featured a unique version of the Toad character
carrying a very heavy explorer's backpack. Toad in the "Super Mario Bros. Movie" dons a
familiar accessory on his back as he heads out for adventure with Peach and Mario.