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The Super Mario Bros. Movie debuted to record-breaking success, earning $204.6 million worldwide in its first five days of release. The animated movie is a collaboration between Nintendo, Illumination, and Universal and features the voices of Chris Pratt as Mario, Charlie Day as Luigi, Anya Taylor-Joy as Princess Peach, and Jack Black as Bowser.
The movie smashed records, becoming the second-biggest debut ever for an animated title and the biggest opening weekend of 2023. It also scored the highest-grossing debut ever for Illumination.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie also scored another $173 million at the international box office.
The movie’s success has been attributed to positive word-of-mouth, nostalgia for the popular video game series, and a huge turnout from family audiences.
Box Office Breakdown
The Super Mario Bros. Movie earned $146 million in its opening weekend, the biggest of the year, surpassing Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania ($106 million).
The movie was expected to collect $86 million over the weekend and $125 million in its first five days of release, but projections were revised up as the weekend progressed.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie also enjoyed a particularly strong turnout in IMAX, bringing in $16.6 million domestically and $21.6 million globally, the highest animated debut ever for the company.
The movie carries a $100 million production budget.
Critical Reception
Critics have been mixed on the film, but audiences’ sentiments were enthusiastic, giving it an “A” CinemaScore.
The success of the film was attributed to its “broad demographic appeal” and how it appeals to five-quadrant audiences, which include families, plus younger and older males and females.
David A. Gross, who runs the movie consulting firm Franchise Entertainment Research, believes this is a marketer’s dream.
Other Major Releases
The week’s other major new release, Air, a sports-business drama about Nike’s historic deal with Michael Jordan, benefitted as counter-programming against The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
The Ben Affleck-directed film landed in the top five with a better-than-expected $14.46 million over the traditional weekend and $20.2 million in its first five days of release.
It’s the first release from Amazon in quite some time to get an exclusive wide release in multiplexes rather than going straight-to-streaming.
Amazon recently announced a commitment to putting 12 to 15 new movies in theaters annually.
Industry Impact
Cinemas, which have been especially starved for family films, were certainly game to celebrate the big turnout, with chains like Cinemark issuing rare statements on the performance of an individual film.
“Moviegoers have demonstrated time and time again that they crave the immersive, cinematic experience only theaters can provide,” said Wanda Gierhart Fearing, Cinemark’s chief marketing and content officer.
Amazon’s move to release Air exclusively in theaters has been welcomed by theaters and the industry as a positive step forward.
“Not every film needs to be theatrical, but some belong in theaters,” said Kevin Wilson, MGM, and Amazon Studios theatrical distribution lead. “This is a really positive thing for Amazon and the industry.”
