The Japan release date for The Super Mario Bros. Movie sequel has been revealed. The director of Mario, Shigeru Miyamoto, revealed in advance of the Nintendo Direct that the film would be released in Japan on April 26, 2026.
"We are working with the Illumination team to make it a fun movie, so please continue to look forward to it," Miyamoto said in a tweet/X post announcing the news.
The Mario sequel will, in fact, be released in Japan after its release in the US and other countries, as this reveals. In March, Chris Meledandri, the creator and CEO of Illumination, said that the much anticipated The Super Mario Bros. Movie sequel will hit theaters on April 3, 2026, in the United States and a few other countries.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie was initially released in the US on April 5, 2023, and then on April 28, 2024, in Japan, so it may not come as a surprise.Miyamoto had said back in March that the team is "thinking about broadening Mario's world further, and it’ll have a bright and fun story," even if plot specifics are still up in the air.
Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic will direct the Super Mario Bros. Movie sequel, while Matthew Fogel will write the screenplay. Melendandri and Miyamoto will share co-production duties for the film. The film will be distributed worldwide by Universal Pictures.The Mario film from Nintendo and Illumination was a huge smash, earning $1.36 billion worldwide at the box office and $559 million in profit. It also became the most profitable video game movie adaptation ever.