The Super Mario Bros. Movie has potentially revealed a lot of characters for a future crossover movie, such as a Super Smash Bros. movie. The Super Mario Bros. Movie achieved incredible success earning $1.36 billion upon its release and laying the foundation for many other family-friendly movies based on video games (via The Numbers). To put into perspective just how impressive that box office figure is, the next five highest earning video game movies all failed to go above $450 million (via The Numbers), meaning it tripled the next highest earning movie’s total box office.

However, that does raise questions about what Universal will do next to capitalize on the success. Of course, a sequel was hinted at the end of the original, and officially confirmed later, but the world of Nintendo is enormous. Along with Mario, there are several other characters and properties that could be introduced in later movies. And if Universal is ambitious, it could be the next Avengers: Endgame level crossover with tons of characters that were already hinted at in The Super Mario Bros. Movie. coming together for an event like the crossover universe featured in Super Smash Bros.

10

Bowser

First on the roster, Bowser is the primary antagonist of The Super Mario Bros. Movie. Voiced by Jack Black, the character followed his typical antics from the games as he tried to take over the entire kingdom and kidnap Princess Peach to be his bride. However, after being defeated in the original film, he could come back later for a crossover event where he either sides with or against his greatest rival, Mario.

Bowser has also been a constant presence in every version of the Super Smash Bros. games since 2001. The second version of the game, created for the GameCube saw Bowser join the cast of playable characters in Super Smash Bros. Melee. Considering how prominent he is in the world of both Mario and the Super Smash Bros. games, it would make sense to include Bowser.

9

Mario

The main man, and the official mascot of the Nintendo corporation, Mario, is a must for any kind of Super Smash Bros. video game or adaptation based on the series. The original game only contained 12 playable characters, and Mario was always going to be the face of it considering the title of the game. Mario is simply too big of a character to leave out of the series.

It may seem straightforward, but finding a way to create a movie based on the Super Smash Bros. game could be the biggest challenge for creatives at Universal. While the games have some storylines to explore and challenges to face, it is mostly known for the 1v1 fighting element. This means that the story would be largely left up to whoever helms the project, which could risk making it either too minimalistic and simple, or too broad and loose.

8

Luigi

Making up the other half of the “Bros.” titles, Luigi is Mario’s older brother, and is usually always close by for adventures with his brother. Luigi is taller and more timid, but that does not mean that he is in any way a less capable fighter, or a skilled plumber. Luigi tends to have a similar move set to his brother, and despite being relegated to the role of sidekick, Luigi has led a fair few games of his own.

Of course, Luigi has also appeared in every single Super Smash Bros. game, and it would only make sense to include him in a crossover movie based on the game. Luigi was a prominent character in The Super Mario Bros. Movie, and would be easy to incorporate into any future storylines. However, where things could get interesting is if the story pits the brothers against each other, as often happens in the brawler-style games.

7

Princess Peach

Princess Peach is the long-term love interest of Mario, but in The Super Mario Bros. Movie, she establishes just how independent and tough she can be. While Bowser has frequently captured her in the games, Peach actually bears a much closer resemblance to her Super Smash Bros. counterpart, who is tough in a fight and ready to take on any opponent.

Just like Bowser, Peach did not appear in the games until the second version was released in 2001. The game more than doubled its roster from 12 to 26 characters, and Peach officially joined the roster. Since that time, she has been included in every other version of the game, where she goes toe to toe with many of the biggest and best characters from Nintendo games.

6

Donkey Kong

Donkey Kong is only featured in The Super Mario Bros. Movie during the final act of the film, but he is a pivotal character from Nintendo history, and another one of the original Super Smash Bros. competitors. Donkey Kong is the main character in his own series of games, although many of his most popular games have been crossovers with Mario and others. The film reveals that he is active, and on the radar within the magical kingdom, so there would be no issues pulling him into a Super Smash Bros. movie.

Having been included in all of the Super Smash Bros. games, as well as being a fan favorite character, it makes perfect sense to bring him back for a crossover movie. Considering his previous meeting with Mario and Peach, he would already have a relationship and potentially become a great ally to them in a brawl-style movie. As well as potentially bringing with him other characters from the Mario spin-off franchise, like Diddy Kong, who has appeared in the last three games.

5

Little Mac

Within The Super Smash Bros. Movie, there are dozens of references to other Nintendo properties littered throughout the film. One character who is prominently referenced but never seen is Little Mac. Little Mac is a character from the popular franchise, Punch-Out!, which was originally released in the US in 1984. While the character from the game is just 17, the movie features a pizza restaurant in the Bronx which proudly features memorabilia from the game and the career of Little Mac, which could indicate he is now grown up.

Little Mac is a much more recent addition to the world of Super Smash Bros. as he only began appearing in the games in 2014 with the 3DS/Wii U version of Super Smash Bros. However, he is clearly present in the world of Super Mario, which could see him pulled out of his normal world like Mario and Luigi to participate in a crossover event. This would be a great way to look back at classic Nintendo games and pay homage to the classics.

4

Yoshi

Yoshi both stars in his own series of games, and frequently joins Mario and the gang in their games. While Yoshi Island is referenced in the movie, the final scene hints at a much more obvious reference to Yoshi joining the plot in the Super Mario Bros. sequel with a Yoshi egg about to hatch in the sewers of New York. This clearly appears to be introducing the character to Mario and Luigi’s world, and the franchise at large.

Yoshi is also one of the original characters from the earliest Super Smash Bros. games, and has appeared in every entry since. Yoshi would be a great character to bridge the two worlds together between Mario’s real world, and the magic kingdom where Yoshi belongs. If Mario and Luigi set out to bring Yoshi home, it could lead to a larger crossover event like Super Smash Bros.

3

R.O.B.

Early in The Super Smash Bros. Movie, while the brothers are walking around the streets of New York City, there is a storefront in the background which features a logo which would be familiar to NES fans from the 80s. R.O.B. was originally a robotic attachment for the NES which could play two games. However, over time, he has progressed to become a character more often seen in Nintendo games.

Now, R.O.B. is best known for his appearances in Super Smash Bros., where he began appearing in 2008’s Wii version of the game, Super Smash Bros. Brawl. R.O.B. is a cute robotic companion, and clearly the idea of him exists within the world of The Super Smash Bros. Movie. Like Little Mac, he could be pulled over from the real world to join an all-out brawl with other popular characters from Nintendo.

2

Ice Climbers

The newsreels within The Super Smash Bros. Movie are also a rich source for Easter Eggs in the movie. Despite how quickly they appear and disappear, they hint at several other characters from across Nintendo properties who exist alongside Mario and Luigi. One pair of characters referenced is the twins known as the Ice Climbers from the 1985 game, Ice Climber.

These characters are mentioned for having committed some sort of act of heroism, which means they are already proving their greatness in the world of Mario. They also appeared in the GameCube and Wii versions of Super Smash Bros., before being absent in the 3DS/Wii U version and returning once again for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate on the Switch. Considering their history in the games and their presence in the movies, they would be a great addition to a crossover movie.

1

Samus

Samus is a character that is typically worlds apart from others like Mario and Luigi. And it appears that this is no different in The Super Smash Bros. Movie where another newsreel reveals a mysterious signal has been detected by NASA from star system FS-176. This is clearly intentional, as it’s the same star system where Samus can be found in the Metroid series of games dating back as far as 1986.

Metroid is another one of Nintendo’s most popular properties, which was reflected by its inclusion as one of the original twelve characters in the first Super Smash Bros. game. Samus has continued to appear in every version of the game since, with more of the roster from the series being introduced over time, including Dark Samus, Ridley, and Zero Suit Samus who have all been included in the latest game. It only makes sense for an epic crossover following The Super Smash Bros. Movie to include Samus as well.