Following on from its casting announcement during a Nintendo Direct event back in September 2021, the Super Mario film has been pretty quiet on the news front.
It's unsurprising to now learn that the project has been delayed from its 21 December 2022 release date and pushed to a Spring 2023 time slot. This will see the film released on 7 April in North America and on 28 April in Japan.
There is not a confirmed date for Europe but the @NintendoEurope account did state that it would also release in April 2023.
The delay comes after a consultation between Shigeru Miyamoto and Chris Meledandri, the founder of Illumination, the studio behind the project and masterminds of the Minions phenomenon.
While the delay may be frustrating for fans, it's only a 4-month wait and at least the film hasn't suffered the same fate as many games where they are delayed with no new release window given.
Illumination will be focusing on the release of Minions: The Rise of Gru - set for release in June 2022 - before allocating maximum resources to the Super Mario film.
The initial announcement of the Super Mario film and subsequent casting caused quite the stir back in September 2021. Many mocked some of the choices that were made while others were outraged. The idea of Chris Pratt voicing the iconic Italian plumber when his most notable and current video game voice actor, Charles Martinet, may have been a better choice seems like most people's concern (and a valid one at that).
We can only hold tight now until April 2023 to see whether or not this Hollywood casting pays off. The delay itself may raise some eyebrows given how Deadline reported backing in May 2020 that progress was going well during an 'extremely productive, innovative and creative time at the company.'