The Super Mario Bros. Movie sequel: Return to the Mushroom Kingdom in 2026

Today is March 10th, aka Mario Day (MAR10, get it?). In honor of the day celebrating everyone's favorite Italian-American plumber, Nintendo had a very special announcement: we're finally getting a sequel to The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

Many had already expected a sequel to the 2023 animated adaptation from Illumination, especially given the film's box office success. But surprisingly, it was never officially announced.

Now we have an actualy date to circle on our calendar. The Super Mario Bros. Movie sequel arrives in theaters on April 3, 2026, in the United States and other markets, and throughout the month of April in other territories.

Illumination is once again working with Nintendo on the film which is currently in the storyboarding and set design stage of production. Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic, directors of the first film, are helming the sequel.

We don't know anything about the plot of the sequel, but Shigeru Miyamoto, creator of the Mario video game franchise, promised it will have a "bright a bright and fun story" that will broaden Mario's world.

The first film introduced general audiences to the world of Mario — as if there are people who don't actually know the video games. The movie followed Italian-American plumbers (and brothers) Mario(Chris Pratt) and Luigi (Charlie Day) as they are sucked into a warp pipe and sent to a mysterious land. Split up from the journey through the pipes, Mario winds up in Mushroom Kingdom, ruled by Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy), while Luigi lands in the Dark Lands, under the control of King Bowser (Jack Black). With Bowser seeking to wed Princess Peach, he threatens to destroy the Mushroom Kingdom if she doesn't agree.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie wasn't popular with critics, but it was a hit with general audiences. The movie earned over $1.3 billion at the global box office, and broke multiple records, including the biggest worldwide opening weekend for an animated film.

It's unfortunate that we have to wait so long to return to the Mushroom Kingdom, but at least we finally have confirmation that a sequel is in the works.