Directors of the upcoming Super Mario Bros. Movie have explained to fans exactly why their casting choice of Chris Pratt to play Mario works so well.
Pratt was announced to portray the iconic Italian plumber back in 2021 and the decision has sparked tension amidst die-hard fans of the franchise.
However, sticking to their guns, directors, Aaron Hovarth and Michael Jelenic, have dubbed Pratt the 'perfect' choice for the role.
Joining Pratt to voice the iconic characters of our childhoods is It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia's Charlie Day as Luigi and The Queen's Gambit's Anya Taylor-Joy as Princess Peach.
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Jack Black also stars as the voice of Bowser, alongside Seth Rogen as Donkey Kong.
However, it's clear that not everyone is pleased with the casting choice of Pratt to take on the part of Mario.
Fans have even gone as far to call for alternative actors to replace Pratt, with some pushing for The Last Of Us star, Pedro Pascal, to portray the Nintendo mascot instead.
Criticised for not switching up his regular voice enough, the news sent Twitter into a spiral with many claiming that the actor 'ultimately brings nothing but a name to his voice'.
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Social media users are even going as far to add the tag #NotMyMario in their posts.
But while the announcement has been clearly met with tons of criticism, Hovarth is confident that Pratt will prove the doubters wrong.
In an interview with Total Film, Hovarth claimed that Pratt was the only clear choice to take on the role of Mario.
"For us, it made total sense," he revealed, "he's really good at playing a blue-collar hero with a ton of heart."
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It is true that Pratt definitely has a lot of experience playing a loveable hero; from Star-Lord in Guardians of the Galaxy to Owen Grady in the Jurassic World franchise.
He added: "For the way that Mario is characterized in our film, he’s perfect for it."
Both Jelenic and Horvath also noted that they wanted to take a fully 'authentic' approach to the movie - adding that Nintendo was with them 'every step of the way'.
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Hovarth said: "We wanted to make this movie a very authentic Nintendo Super Mario experience."
Alongside the movie's directors, Illumination Studios co-producer, Chris Meledandri, has also promised audiences that Pratt's voicing of the beloved character would be 'phenomenal'.
Speaking to Too Fab, the boss behind a stack of animated franchises including Despicable Me and Ice Age, revealed: "All I can tell you is the voice that he's doing for us, and Mario, is phenomenal."
"Yeah, I can't wait for people to hear it." he added.
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The Super Mario Bros. Movie is set to be released on 5 April in the United States and 7 April in the UK.
Topics: Film and TV, Super Mario, Chris Pratt