A Super Mario Bros film is coming to the big screen but the announcement of the cast has been ridiculed for its complete lack of Italian actors.
Super Mario Bros’ film will focus on the lives of Mario and Luigi from the famous videogames.
The animated film adaptation of the video game received mixed reviews 30 years after its original release.
Nintendo surprised everyone by announcing that Chris Pratt, an American actor, will play Mario. Charlie Day will play his brother Luigi.
Other cast members will include The Queen’s Gambit’s Anya Taylor-Joy as Princess Peach, Jack Black as Bowser, Keegan-Michael Key as Toad and Seth Rogan as Donkey Kong.
One pretty significant fact that didn’t get past the internet is that none of the voice actors cast are Italian, leading to countless memes and jokes about Italian discrimination.
Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter The Viral Democracy
Others put forward their suggestions for who they want to play the two famous brothers. Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino were some of the fan favorites. Joe Pesci was also a popular choice.
Others were disappointed with Pratt’s casting due to his affiliation with the megachurch Hillsong.
Actor Elliott Page has previously accused the church of being “anti-LGBTQ”, but Pratt said that he personally “believes that everyone is entitled to love who they want”.
The church’s founder Brian Houston has previously said that the church welcomes gay members, “but we are not a church that affirms a gay lifestyle”.
One person on Twitter wrote: “Chris Pratt as Mario is such a goddamn pitch-perfect representation of Nintendo’s relationship—both historical and current—with its queer fans.”
This will not be the first Super Mario Bros movie to be made. In 1993, a darkly comical live-action version was shown on the big screen. It starred Dennis Hopper and Bob Hoskins. Although it received mostly negative reviews at the time, it has since been a minor favourite amongst its fans.