Watch The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) and then The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026); they are the only connected films. The 1993 live-action Super Mario Bros. and the cartoons from 1989 to 1991 are separate takes you can watch in any order.
- Titles
- 7
- Films
- 4
- Series
- 3
- Watch time
- 39 hours
- Box office
- $2.39 billion
- Avg IMDb
- 6.1
Super Mario movies in release order
Here is every Super Mario title in the order it came out, 1986 to 2026: 4 films and 3 series. Optional entries are marked; you can skip them on a first watch.
| # | Title | Year | Type | Runtime | IMDb |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Super Mario Bros.: The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach! optional | 1986 | Film | 1h 1m | 5.7 |
| 2 | The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! optional | 1989 | Series | 25h 3m | 6.3 |
| 3 | The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 optional | 1990 | Series | 5h 11m | 7 |
| 4 | Super Mario World optional | 1991 | Series | 2h 23m | 6.5 |
| 5 | Super Mario Bros. | 1993 | Film | 1h 45m | 4.2 |
| 6 | The Super Mario Bros. Movie | 2023 | Film | 1h 33m | 7 |
| 7 | The Super Mario Galaxy Movie | 2026 | Film | 1h 38m | 6.3 |
Release or chronological: which order is best?
For Super Mario, release order and story order are the same thing: every film picks up after the one before it. There is no prequel to slot in early and no flashback to reshuffle, so the list above is the only order you need.
Where to start
Start with Super Mario Bros. and go in release order, skipping the 4 optional titles on the first pass.
The essentials are 3 titles and about 5 hours, 87% less than the full run.
The three highest rated: The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 (7), The Super Mario Bros. Movie (7), and Super Mario World (6.5).
Every Super Mario movie, explained
One entry per title in release order: what it is about, why it matters to the bigger story, who is in it and how it did.
No. 01 · 1986 · Film · 1h 1m · optional
Super Mario Bros.: The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach!
When Princess Peach is kidnapped by the monster King Koopa, Mario and his brother Luigi journey to the Mushroom Kingdom to rescue her.
Why it matters: A 1986 Japanese anime film; never released in the West. Optional.
- Starring
- Toru Furuya, Yu Mizushima, and Mami Yamase
- Director
- Masami Hata
- Scores
- IMDb 5.7
No. 02 · 1989 · Series · 25h 3m · optional
The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!
In 1989 the two most famous plumbers from Brooklyn burst out of the Nintendo game world and onto television screens across America. The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! aired weekday afternoons and brought Mario, Luigi, Princess Toadstool and King Koopa more thrilling adventures as cartoon characters. And if that weren't enough, each episode also contained live-action segments featuring Mario and Luigi running their Brooklyn plumbing shop - all before they were flushed down a drainpipe into the Mushroom World.
Why it matters: Live-action Mario and Luigi in Brooklyn, plus cartoons; optional.
- Starring
- Louis Albano, Danny Wells, and Harvey Atkin
- Creator
- Bob Forward, Reed Shelly, Phil Harnage, and Bruce Shelly
- Scores
- IMDb 6.3
- Episodes
- 65
No. 03 · 1990 · Series · 5h 11m · optional
The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3
The Mario Bros., Princess Toadstool, and Toad protect the Mushroom Kingdom against the evil forces of Bowser and his seven Koopa Kids.
Why it matters: The Koopalings cartoon; optional.
- Starring
- Walker Boone, Tony Rosato, and Tracey Moore
- Creator
- Reed Shelly and Bruce Shelly
- Scores
- IMDb 7
- Episodes
- 26
No. 04 · 1991 · Series · 2h 23m · optional
Super Mario World
Mario, Luigi, Yoshi and Princess Toadstool are on Dinosaur Island foiling the plans of King Koopa and his Koopa kids.
Why it matters: Yoshi and Dinosaur Land; optional.
- Starring
- Walker Boone, Tony Rosato, and Tracey Moore
- Scores
- IMDb 6.5
- Episodes
- 13
No. 05 · 1993 · Film · 1h 45m
Super Mario Bros.
Mario and Luigi, plumbers from Brooklyn, find themselves in an alternate universe where evolved dinosaurs live in hi-tech squalor. They're the only hope to save our universe from invasion by the dino dictator, Koopa.
Why it matters: The live-action film with Bob Hoskins and Dennis Hopper, set in a dinosaur city.
- Starring
- Bob Hoskins, John Leguizamo, and Dennis Hopper
- Director
- Rocky Morton and Annabel Jankel
- Box office
- $21 million on a $48 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 4.2 · Rotten Tomatoes 26%
No. 06 · 2023 · Film · 1h 33m
The Super Mario Bros. Movie
While working underground to fix a water main, Brooklyn plumbers—and brothers—Mario and Luigi are transported down a mysterious pipe and wander into a magical new world. But when the brothers are separated, Mario embarks on an epic quest to find Luigi.
Why it matters: Illumination's film: two Brooklyn plumbers, Peach, Donkey Kong and Bowser.
- Starring
- Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, and Charlie Day
- Director
- Michael Jelenic and Aaron Horvath
- Box office
- $1.36 billion on a $100 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 7 · Rotten Tomatoes 59%
No. 07 · 2026 · Film · 1h 38m
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie
Having thwarted Bowser's previous plot to marry Princess Peach, Mario and Luigi now face a fresh threat in Bowser Jr., who is determined to liberate his father from captivity and restore the family legacy. Alongside companions new and old, the brothers travel across the stars to stop the young heir's crusade.
Why it matters: The sequel heads to space with Rosalina and Yoshi.
- Starring
- Chris Pratt, Charlie Day, and Anya Taylor-Joy
- Director
- Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic
- Box office
- $1.01 billion on a $110 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 6.3 · Rotten Tomatoes 42%
Super Mario box office and budgets
The 3 Super Mario films with reported numbers have grossed $2.39 billion worldwide on about $258 million in combined budgets, roughly 9.3 times what they cost. The biggest is The Super Mario Bros. Movie at $1.36 billion, 57% of the franchise's total on its own, followed by The Super Mario Galaxy Movie ($1.01 billion) and Super Mario Bros. ($21 million).
Measured against what it cost, the best return belongs to The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which made 14 times its $100 million budget. The weakest was Super Mario Bros. at 44% of its $48 million budget. As a rule of thumb, a film needs about two and a half times its budget at the box office to cover marketing and the theaters' cut.
The best and worst rated Super Mario movies
Across 7 rated titles, Super Mario averages 6.1 on IMDb. The top of the list is The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 at 7, then The Super Mario Bros. Movie (7) and Super Mario World (6.5). At the bottom: Super Mario Bros. (4.2) and Super Mario Bros.: The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach! (5.7).
- The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 37
- The Super Mario Bros. Movie7 · RT 59%
- Super Mario World6.5
- The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!6.3
- The Super Mario Galaxy Movie6.3 · RT 42%
- Super Mario Bros.: The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach!5.7
- Super Mario Bros.4.2 · RT 26%
Who appears in the most Super Mario movies
Harvey Atkin leads with 3 appearances as King Koopa, ahead of John Stocker (3) and Tabitha St. Germain (3). Counted from each title's top-billed cast.
| Actor | Role | Titles | First and latest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harvey Atkin | King Koopa | 3 | The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! (1989) to Super Mario World (1991) |
| John Stocker | Toad / Oogtar | 3 | The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! (1989) to Super Mario World (1991) |
| Tabitha St. Germain | Spryte / Kootie-Pie Koopa | 3 | The Super Mario Bros. Super Show! (1989) to Super Mario World (1991) |
| Walker Boone | Mario | 2 | The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 (1990) to Super Mario World (1991) |
| Tony Rosato | Luigi | 2 | The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 (1990) to Super Mario World (1991) |
| Tracey Moore | Princess Toadstool | 2 | The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 (1990) to Super Mario World (1991) |
| Chris Pratt | Mario | 2 | The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) to The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026) |
| Anya Taylor-Joy | Princess Peach | 2 | The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) to The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026) |
| Charlie Day | Luigi | 2 | The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) to The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026) |
| Jack Black | Bowser | 2 | The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) to The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026) |
| Keegan-Michael Key | Toad | 2 | The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) to The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026) |
| Kevin Michael Richardson | Kamek | 2 | The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) to The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026) |
Super Mario directors and creators
9 filmmakers have directed or created Super Mario; Reed Shelly has the most, with 2.
- Reed ShellyThe Super Mario Bros. Super Show! (1989) and The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 (1990)
- Bruce ShellyThe Super Mario Bros. Super Show! (1989) and The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 (1990)
- Michael JelenicThe Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) and The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026)
- Aaron HorvathThe Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) and The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026)
- Masami HataSuper Mario Bros.: The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach! (1986)
- Bob ForwardThe Super Mario Bros. Super Show! (1989)
- Phil HarnageThe Super Mario Bros. Super Show! (1989)
- Rocky MortonSuper Mario Bros. (1993)
- Annabel JankelSuper Mario Bros. (1993)
How long it takes to watch every Super Mario movie
All 7 titles add up to 39 hours: 6 hours of film and 33 hours of series, counting every episode. That is about 20 two-hour evenings, or 4 days of ten-hour binges. The essentials cut it to 5 hours. The longest film is Super Mario Bros. at 1h 45m.
The 4 best rated films: The Super Mario Bros. Movie, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, Super Mario Bros.: The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach!, and Super Mario Bros..
Everything takes about 6 weeks; the essentials about 5 days.
Track what you've watched on the timeline and it counts the hours left.
Which Super Mario movies can you skip?
4 titles can go without losing the main story. They are side stories, spin-offs or entries the later films ignore. Dropping them saves 34 hours.
- Super Mario Bros.: The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach!1986 · Film · 1h 1m · optionalA 1986 Japanese anime film; never released in the West. Optional.
- The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!1989 · Series · 25h 3m · optionalLive-action Mario and Luigi in Brooklyn, plus cartoons; optional.
- The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 31990 · Series · 5h 11m · optionalThe Koopalings cartoon; optional.
- Super Mario World1991 · Series · 2h 23m · optionalYoshi and Dinosaur Land; optional.
Common questions
What order should I watch the Super Mario movies in?
Watch The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) and then The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026); they are the only connected films. The 1993 live-action Super Mario Bros. and the cartoons from 1989 to 1991 are separate takes you can watch in any order.
How many Super Mario movies and shows are there?
There are 7 titles in the Super Mario franchise: 4 films and 3 series, released from 1986 to 2026.
How long does it take to watch all the Super Mario movies?
About 39 hours for all 7 titles, counting every episode. The essentials only (3 titles) take about 5 hours.
What is the first Super Mario title in chronological order?
Super Mario Bros.: The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach!, set in A Japanese anime film. In release order the first is Super Mario Bros.: The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach! (1986).
Which Super Mario titles can I skip?
Super Mario Bros.: The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach!, The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3, and Super Mario World. They are spin-offs, side stories or non-canon entries; the main story holds without them.
What is the best Super Mario movie?
By IMDb score, The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 (1990) at 7, followed by The Super Mario Bros. Movie at 7.
What is the highest-grossing Super Mario movie?
The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023), with $1.36 billion worldwide. Super Mario films have made $2.39 billion in total.
Who has appeared in the most Super Mario movies?
Harvey Atkin, in 3 of them as King Koopa.
What is the longest Super Mario movie?
Super Mario Bros., at 1h 45m.
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