Every Upcoming Nintendo Video Game Movie

While Nintendo is best known for its video games, the company has done an excellent job of translating its beloved characters onto the big screen in recent years. Whether it’s Super Mario or Pokémon, they have countless properties that are gradually coming together into an expansive “Nintendo Cinematic Universe”, featuring some of the most commercially successful animated movies of the past few years.

While The Super Mario Bros. Movie kicked off this franchise, Nintendo have plans to expand beyond the Mushroom Kingdom over the next few years. Several exciting sequels are officially in development at the studio (primarily in collaboration with Universal Pictures), and a few projects with more uncertain futures that fans are desperately waiting for updates on.

4

The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2

Release Date: April 3, 2026

The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2 is a direct sequel to Nintendo’s smash-hit animated film from 2023, which introduced audiences to Mario, Luigi, and several other key figures from the Mushroom Kingdom. The first movie was a huge commercial success, quickly climbing the charts and becoming one of the highest-grossing movies of all time.

The movie stars Chris Pratt as Mario, with Charlie Day, Jack Black, and Anya Taylor-Joy finishing out the animated ensemble. While very few details have been released about the story of The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2, it’s clear that Nintendo’s upcoming sequel will expand upon the world of the video games with new characters and familiar locations.

The ending of The Super Mario Bros. Movie teased the arrival of Yoshi, the lovable green dinosaur who has served as Mario’s loyal companion throughout Nintendo’s video game franchise. His character will likely play a major role in the upcoming sequel, while countless other figures from throughout Super Mario history will also surely make appearances.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2 is currently slated for release on April 3, 2026, with many rumors suggesting that it will be officially тιтled Super Mario World. The lack of updates surrounding the sequel can likely be put down to Nintendo’s desire to build an entire cinematic universe from the property, with many spinoff movies on the horizon.

Though none of these spinoffs have been officially announced, there are countless rumors about where the Super Mario franchise may go after Super Mario World.

Development on The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2 was largely halted by the SAG-AFTRA writers’ strike in 2023, which gave the studio more time to consider the film’s role in the context of a larger franchise with spinoff properties and solo movies. Though none of these spinoffs have been officially announced, there are countless rumors about where the franchise may go after Super Mario World.

3

The Legend of Zelda

Release Date: May 7, 2027

The Legend of Zelda is the only movie officially in development at Nintendo that isn’t a sequel or spinoff of another movie. The film will be loosely inspired by the ‘Legend of Zelda’ video game series, with the story reportedly drawing inspiration from games such as “Ocarina of Time” and “Twilight Princess”.

Nintendo’s live-action Legend of Zelda movie has been delayed a few times, as the studio has spent the past few months searching for the perfect cast. But finally, two breakthrough stars have recently been cast in the lead roles: Benjamin Evan Ainsworth and Bo Bragason will play protagonists Link and Princess Zelda, respectively.

It’s unclear whether The Legend of Zelda is intended to be connected to the rest of Nintendo’s video game movies, but the live-action format makes it unlikely that there’ll be any crossover between projects. The story of The Legend of Zelda will reportedly be slightly more mature, still aimed towards young audiences, but taking advantage of the complex storytelling of the video games.

The Nintendo movie now has a prospective release date of May 7, 2027, giving it plenty of space from The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2 and preventing any kind of compeтιтion at the box office. This release date also makes it unlikely that any other Nintendo projects will come out in the summer of 2027.

The Legend of Zelda will be directed by Wes Ball, whose previous credits include the Maze Runner trilogy and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. The latter of these projects is well-known for its motion-capture effects and impressive CGI, perhaps hinting that Ball will be working with similar technologies in this video game adaptation.

2

Detective Pikachu 2

Release Date: TBC

Although it’s been over six years since the original movie’s release, a sequel to Detective Pikachu is officially on the way. The project was confirmed in 2023, but very few updates have been announced since then. It seems as though the sequel has been severely delayed by the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Hollywood strikes of 2023.

The most recent update about Detective Pikachu 2 came from lead star Justice Smith, who revealed in January 2024 that his communication with the studio has been limited. Speaking with ScreenRant, the actor confirmed that “I know what was released online, but no one has called me. So I’m just waiting for that call.”

Detective Pikachu was released on May 10, 2019.

The future looks very uncertain, but the studio is clearly committed to making the project happen eventually. The majority of the production issues seem to hail from the film’s constantly changing crew; Rob Letterman was originally set to return as director, but he was later replaced by Jonathan Krisel in 2023, with Chris Galletta joining as the writer.

This Pokémon sequel is certainly one of the studio’s most uncertain projects, but the huge success of Detective Pikachu means that Nintendo won’t give up too easily. The first movie pulled in over $433 million across the world, and a sequel would likely perform just as well, given the sheer amount of possibilities regarding new characters, familiar locations, and fresh video game references.

1

Unтιтled Donkey Kong Movie

Release Date: TBC

While there’s been no official comment from Nintendo or Universal about this potential spinoff, the news recently broke that the studios have claimed the copyright for a Donkey Kong movie. The character was first introduced in The Super Mario Bros. Movie, where he was voiced by Seth Rogen. The movie also included several other members of the video game family, including Diddy Kong and Cranky Kong.

Donkey Kong will almost certainly be the first of several Mario spinoffs that Universal and Nintendo have planned, building on the enormous success of The Super Mario Bros. Movie from 2023. Given just how frequently these characters have crossed paths in video games, tying the characters’ stories together shouldn’t be too difficult.

As there has been no official comment from Nintendo yet, it’s hard to say exactly which Donkey Kong video game the upcoming movie will draw inspiration from, but there are countless fascinating options. The spinoff could be a simple continuation of DK’s storyline from The Super Mario Bros. Movie, but games like “Tropical Freeze” or “Mario vs Donkey Kong” open the door for some great ideas.

Donkey Kong Bananza has also received excellent reviews following its debut on the Nintendo Switch 2, so Nintendo may capitalize on this newfound hype by tying their new movie to this popular video game. Whatever route the studio decides to take, their charming animation style blended with Rogen’s entertaining vocal performance is sure to be a recipe for success.

Nintendo Poster

Date Founded

September 23, 1889

CEO

Satoru Iwata

Parent Company

Nintendo

Subsidiaries

Nintendo EPD, Nintendo SPD, Nintendo EAD

Consoles

Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo GameCube, Nintendo 64, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Nintendo Entertainment System, Nintendo Wii U, Nintendo Game Boy, Nintendo Game Boy Color, Nintendo Game Boy Advance, Nintendo Switch Lite

Services

Nintendo Switch Online


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