“The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” an  animated adventure adaptation of the iconic video game, crushed competition in its Easter opening weekend, taking in a staggering $204.6 million domestically and $377 million worldwide.

It’s the highest-grossing movie of 2023 so far, and it’s likely to be the highest-grossing movie of the year as well. Despite mixed reviews, the theater was packed with kids, families and Nintendo fans of all ages.

This isn’t the first attempt at a Super Mario movie. The 1993 live-action Super Mario Bros. movie bombed at the box office, proving Hollywood’s failure to adapt video game stories into cinematic legends.

This time, Nintendo and Universal Pictures insisted on using Mario animation to tell a new story. Mario and Luigi are two ordinary, downtrodden plumbers in Brooklyn. Seeking to prove themselves by fighting a massive urban flood, the brothers are sucked into a video game world through an underground pipe. 

In this world, Bowser, the fire-breathing dinosaur-turtle, set out to take over territories in search of Princess Peach. After falling into the sewer and going astray into a different world, Mario shoulders the mission of saving the princess and the entire Mushroom Kingdom.  

Mario is voiced by famous actor Chris Pratt followed by an all-star cast including Anya Taylor-Joy, Keegan-Michael Key, Seth Rogen, Fred Armisen, Sebastian Maniscalco, Charles Martinez and Kevin Michael Richardson. 

As it turned out, the movie was a hit. Despite entering its eighth weekend, Super Mario still took in $6.27 million. The domestic box office of “Mario” has exceeded $560 million, and the total box office is expected to be about $561 million. 

Today, the Super Mario Bros. Movie has made $1.3 billion worldwide, breaking several box-office records, including the largest worldwide opening weekend for an animated picture and the highest-grossing film based on a video game. As a result, the film is the highest-grossing film domestically and globally so far this year, and is currently the third-highest-grossing animated film of all time. 

One of the reasons “Super Mario Bros.” is so famous is its earthy and humorous recreation of video game scenes. Many people remember Super Mario from their childhood, and this film recreates the classic so that today’s children may fall in love with the adorable brothers. 

From the luxury voice cast made up of an all-star ensemble to Mario’s magnificent animation, people of all ages will find something to enjoy in this action-packed rescue quest. This Super Mario adaptation is an indisputable triumph.