The Super Mario Bros. Movie has turned out to be a major success for all parties involved which includes Nintendo, Illumination, and Universal.
The movie was released last year and managed to create one record after another, culminating in a box office gross of more than 1.36 Billion. This led to the movie making record profit when all costs were calculated versus the revenue it generated, according to a report.
The animated movie from Illumination that was overseen by Shigeru Miyamoto made more than half a billion in profit according to the report. The estimated profit is around $559 million, which makes it only the third animated movie to hit this milestone after Frozen 2 and Minions. It also came close to beating Frozen 2, even though the former is an animation juggernaut from Disney. It made more than $600 million in profit from Disney when it was released back in 2019 and holds the record for the most profitable animated movie of all time.
What is remarkable is that this profit estimate also puts it in the same league as other major blockbusters including The Lion King, Avengers Endgame, Avatar, and Spider-Man No Way Home.
Nintendo split the cost and revenue of The Super Mario Bros. Movie with Universal, which means they received almost half of it. They also benefited from the massive promotion of their IP which led to record sales for Mario games including the newly launched Super Mario Bros. Wonder, Super Mario RPG, and Princess Peach Showtime.
Universal Pictures, Illumination, and Nintendo teamed up to bring the adventures of Mario and Luigi to life on the big screen with The Super Mario Bros. Movie. It follows the story of these two Italian-American plumbers as they find themselves in a fantasy world, entangled in a conflict between the Mushroom Kingdom, ruled by Princess Peach, and the Koopas, led by Bowser. The voice cast includes Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Day, and Jack Black.