Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri says the massive success of the Super Mario movies is all thanks to Nintendo and series creator Shigeru Miyamoto.
“The secret is being able to bring Miyamoto and the team into the center of the process,” Meledandri said in a red carpet interview, when asked what is the “secret” to the films being enormously successful. “It’s not something that we had ever done at Illumination. You know, we had made 10 movies at Illumination. We had made all of them completely inside the studio. So, this was the first time that we were going to work in a new way.”
Illumination is responsible for animated blockbusters like The Secret Life of Pets, Despicable Me, and, yes, all of those Minions movies. The Super Mario Bros. Movie marked the studio’s first-ever collaboration with Nintendo… and it grossed over $1 billion at the global box office.
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“And I’m not just I’m not just complimenting Miyamoto because he’s standing here,” Meledandri continued, referring to Miyamoto as a “secret weapon.” “Part of me doesn’t want to give away this secret because it’s like having the secret to Coca-Cola and then giving it away. The secret actually is the inclusion of Miyamoto and the Nintendo artists in the center of the filmmaking process.”
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is on track to have the biggest opening weekend so far in 2026, with a projected $350 million. This beats out Project Hail Mary’s $180 million, and also puts it on track to potentially surpass or, at the very least match, the previous film’s $1 billion gross. The new movie has even more Nintendo character cameos, including Fox McCloud (voiced by apparent super-fan Glen Powell), Princess Rosalina (voiced by well-known Nintendo super-fan Brie Larson), and those impossibly cute Pikmin.
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is in theaters now. For more, check out our Super Mario Galaxy Movie review or dive into our Super Mario Galaxy Movie Easter eggs guide.
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