Super Mario Bros. Movie Star Chris Pratt Addresses His Mario Voice (Exclusive)

Chris Pratt has explained how he found his Mario voice for The Super Mario Bros. Movie. Mario is one of the most iconic characters probably ever. He has an instantly recognizable look with his red hat, blue overalls, bushy mustache, and big boots, a voice that is easily impersonated, and has been in some of the biggest games of all-time. Naturally, when it was announced that Universal and Illumination would be adapting the Mario games into a movie, many wondered who would play the Italian plumber. Some suggested Mario voice actor Charles Martinet should play the character, but the role ended up going to Chris Pratt… which sparked a lot of controversy online. Pratt is not exactly known for having a voice acting career, despite his time on the LEGO movies, and many questioned if he could do the voice justice.

Once people heard the voice in the first trailer, the reaction was less negative once it became apparent it wasn’t going to be a Mario impression or something too over the top. When speaking to ComicBook.com to promote The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Pratt revealed how he and the team on the film worked to find the voice. Pratt noted it was a lot of trial and error as even the directors of the film weren’t sure what they wanted, but they all collectively wanted to honor the voice talent from the games. After three or four sessions of recordings, they honed in on the voice. Eventually, they clipped it out and would play it for Pratt before other recording sessions so that he could get into the right head space.

Ultimately, it remains to be seen just how well the voice works in the movie itself. The Super Mario Bros. Movie looks great based on the trailers we have seen, so we can likely expect something fun in its own right. As of right now, it remains to be seen if we get any more Mario movies, but if this is the box office juggernaut it looks like it’s shaping up to be, then we can probably guarantee a lot more animated Mario content.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie will release on April 5th, 2023. What do you think of Chris Pratt’s voice? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter @Cade_Onder.