From the moment it was announced that Chris Pratt is voicing Mario in Illumination’s The Super Mario Bros. MovieThat casting decision has been a source of controversy. Many people piped in on social media to share their belief that Pratt wasn’t the right actor to voice the Nintendo icon, and that backlash hasn’t died down since we got a quick taste of Pratt’s Mario voice in the first trailer for The Super Mario Bros. Movie. Now Khary Payton, one of Pratt’s co-stars, is coming to the Guardians of the GalaxyActor defends controversial accent
Khary Payton’s major credits include the voice of Cyborg, DC Comics’ supervillain for 20 years, and King Ezekiel. The Walking DeadParticipating in The Super Mario Bros. Movie as the Penguin King, who we saw in the trailer order an unsuccessful snowball attack against Jack Black’s Bowser and his army. While speaking with InsiderMore The Walking Dead’s final episodes, Payton shared that he thinks the people who dislike Chris Pratt’s Mario voice are going overboard with their criticism, saying:
People are always too hypersensitive online. I actually think that he’s doing kind of like this New York, Italian guy — like a cousin of The Sopranos or something, which, I think, is kind of a fun take on it rather than being, ‘It’s a me, a Mario.’
Charles Martinet voiced Mario in video games for the majority of his life with an exaggerated Italian accent. Khary Payton noted that it is possible to make out some parts in The Super Mario Bros. MovieTrailer: Chris Pratt chose a New York/Italian blend for his version of the character. Payton is on board with this version of Mario, adding that Pratt’s version might “be more interesting and updated” compared to the Mario voice people have gotten used to for decades. We’ll have to wait until the next trailer for The Super Mario Bros. Movie to get a better gauge on Pratt’s Mario voice, but for now, Payton likes what the actor is bringing to the table.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie is Khary Payton’s second collaboration with directors Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic, who previously helmed 2018’s Teen Titans Go! To the Movies. The movie’s voice cast also includes Anya Taylor-Joy as Princess Peach, Charlie Day as Luigi, Keegan-Michael Key as Toad, Seth Rogen as Donkey Kong, Fred Armisen as Cranky Kong, Sebastian Maniscalco as Foreman Spike, Kevin Michael Richardson as Kamek, Eric Bauza in an undisclosed role and the aforementioned Charles Martinet making “surprise cameos.”Matthew Fogel, previously a fellow Illumination writer The Rise of Gru: Minions, penned The Super Mario Bros. Movie’s screenplay.
We also know many other things. The Super Mario Bros. MovieIt will be in theaters on April 7, 2023. The public can then form an opinion about whether Chris Pratt is the right choice for Mario. Make sure you check out the 2023 additional movie releases to plan your theater visits next year.