The Next Mario Movie is Coming Sooner Than You Think

Nintendo has announced that the next Super Mario Bros. movie will be coming out in two years, shocking a ton of fans. That’s only three years after Illumination’s first Mario movie, though its success is probably why we’re getting a follow-up so soon.

Shigeru Miyamoto, one of the biggest faces of Nintendo, told fans in the company’s Japanese Twitter account when the next Mario movie would be coming out. Miyamoto said that this sequel will be coming out on April 24, 2026, promising that this second outing will be a fun movie like the first one.

“Hello, this is Miyamoto. We will be broadcasting a Nintendo Direct tonight, but before that I would like to make an announcement,” read the tweet’s translation. “The release date for the new Super Mario animated movie in Japan has been set for April 24, 2026. We are working with the Illumination team to make it a fun movie, so please continue to look forward to it.”

Considering how successful the first Mario movie was, we’re not surprised that Nintendo and Illumination want to capitalize on its popularity right away. While the first movie did have a ton of references and fanservice, there was still plenty of room for more and that can happen in this sequel.

After the events of the first movie, a Yoshi egg was teased in the film’s post-credits sequence, hinting at a major role for the fan-favorite dinosaur. This cameo was a bit awkward since the film did show other Yoshis beforehand, though none of them had the character’s iconic green skin.

Bowser was also taken prisoner by Princess Peach by the film’s end, so it will be interesting to see how he gets out. It’s easy enough to speculate that Bowser Jr. and the Koopalings will join their father as a family of villains in this next Mario movie. Until anything is confirmed, all we can do is speculate.

The new Mario movie will be coming out on April 24, 2026. Fans that want more Mario should check out Super Mario Bros. Wonder and Super Mario Odyssey on Nintendo Switch.