Even before it’s been released, a lot of eyes are on The Super Mario Galaxy Movie (2026). The original film, The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023), is one of the highest-grossing animated films of all time, and it’s currently sitting at #14 on the streaming charts thanks to its availability on Peacock. Not only that, but The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is set to adapt one of the most beloved video games Nintendo has ever created, Super Mario Galaxy, a game that Nintendo has rereleased multiple times since its original 2007 release. People love Nintendo, and those hoping for more adaptations may be getting their wish granted.
In the week before The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’s release, Nintendo decided to release a bombshell piece of news that has sent almost every video game fan into overdrive: Star Fox will appear in the movie. Now, fans are hoping that Nintendo is setting the framework for a Super Smash Bros. multiverse or movie. Is this possible, or just wishful thinking? Let’s break it down.
Who Is Star Fox? (And Why Is He In ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’?)
With only one week before the release of The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, Nintendo and Illumination revealed in a poster that Fox McCloud, aka Star Fox, will appear in the film, with Glen Powell voicing him.
For younger Nintendo fans, that may not mean much. After all, the last Star Fox game was released a decade ago in 2017. But to long-time gamers, Fox McCloud is an underrated character in Nintendo’s pantheon of franchises, desperately in need of some newfound attention. He’s a mercenary pilot who frequently saves the galaxy from intergalactic threats alongside his comrades Falco, Peppy, and Slippy in their dogfighting spaceship, the Arwing. The games are fun, arcade-like experiences, and back in the ‘90s, it was as good as gold.
Star Fox’s inclusion in The Super Mario Galaxy Movie most likely has to do with the interplanetary threat that Bowser and Bowser Jr. pose. If they’re traveling around the cosmos and causing havoc, then it’s no surprise that they would get the attention of intergalactic fighter pilots trying to maintain universal peace. Nintendo has some other space-themed characters it could introduce to tackle Bowser, but they’re not as cuddly or family-friendly as Fox is. Sure, there is Samus Aran and her stoic, ruthlessly efficient self, but Star Fox fits more with the tone and vibe of the first film.
How Likely Is A ‘Super Smash Bros.’ Event Or Movie?
Because of Fox’s appearance and how he’s never appeared in any Mario game before, many people online are saying that his presence means that Nintendo is laying the foundation to create a Super Smash Bros. movie.
For those who are unaware, Super Smash Bros. is a fighting franchise made by Nintendo that essentially serves as one of the largest crossovers in gaming. Mario can fight Pikachu from Pokémon (1997), Luigi can brawl with a Mii from the Nintendo Wii, and Peach can even take on characters from non-Nintendo series like Richter Belmont, who fans may have seen recently in Castlevania: Nocturne (2023). It’s a tribute to everything that makes video games fun, and the thought of seeing such an experience in theaters on the same scale as Avengers: Endgame (2019) is simply irresistible.
Sadly, fans should temper their expectations. Much like how Nintendo has teased plans to make a Donkey Kong movie following his appearance in The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Star Fox’s introduction may just be to generate interest in a spin-off film. Introduce him here, see how popular he is, and if audiences like him, then start developing a film. Sure, a Super Smash Bros. Movie may be exciting, but even if Nintendo were laying the foundation for one, it would be years, if not decades, before it could be fully realized. In all likelihood, if the rumors surrounding The Super Mario Galaxy Movie are true, any Super Smash Bros. movie would probably involve Mario and Luigi fighting their evil doppelgangers, Wario and Waluigi, rather than a huge crossover of the Nintendo franchises.
The Crossover Potential For Mario With Pokémon & Sonic The Hedgehog
Even if a Super Smash Bros. movie may not be in the cards, don’t rule out a potential crossover for Mario and specific Nintendo franchises. After all, Pixels (2015) and Ready Player One (2018) brought together multiple series from numerous video game developers into one film.
Immediately, one franchise that springs to mind is Pokémon. Pokémon is the most successful franchise of all time, and if Nintendo wanted to have some Pokémon appear in a future Mario movie, it’s more than possible. Yoshi is just as cuddly as any Pokémon, and given how Mario and Luigi travel to the Mushroom Kingdom through a magical pipe, there’s bound to be at least one pipe that could take them to Kanto or Johto to meet a Pikachu.
But the biggest pipe dream of them all would be having Mario crossover with Sonic the Hedgehog. Back in the ‘90s, the two of them were vicious rivals. While crossovers between the two have become more commonplace with games like Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games, seeing them onscreen together would be magical. Is it likely? Probably not, given that Paramount owns the rights to the Sonic the Hedgehog films and Universal owns The Super Mario Bros. Movie, but they’ve put their differences aside before. It may seem far-fetched, but stranger things have happened. After all, Fox McCloud is going to appear for the first time in nearly a decade in The Super Mario Galaxy Movie. Anything’s possible.
