After the success of the Sonic and Detective Pikachu movie, Hollywood is now licking its lips at the prospect of more live-action films (featuring CGI) based on popular video games. It does help, though, to know what the fans want, and according to a recent poll conducted by The Hollywood Reporter and Morning Consult, it's a Mario movie.
This American-based poll found that 44 percent of the 2,200 respondents were either "somewhat" or "very" interested in a new live-action film based on the Super Mario series. Given how the video game series is, we probably shouldn't be too surprised. While the 1993 Super Mario Bros. film starring Bob Hoskins, John Leguizamo, and Dennis Hopper was widely panned, it did gain a cult following over the years.
Other long-time series like Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Grand Theft Auto, Call of Duty and The Legend of Zelda series follow Mario. One of the more interesting and possibly alarming picks was a Mario Kart movie. More than 34 percent are interested in seeing this on the big screen.
Here are the full results:
While we might not be getting a live-action Mario movie anytime soon, Nintendo and Illumination are currently working on an animated film. It's aiming to be released in cinemas by 2022.
Would you be open to another live-action Mario movie in the future? How about a Mario Kart movie? Share your thoughts below.
[source gonintendo.com]
Comments 64
Huh... any idea how a Mario Kart movie would work? Or a pac man movie for that matter.
Also, wasn’t somebody making a Tetris movie? Did anything come from that?
Can I just vote "I don't want more live action video game movies."?
Or
"I want animated video game movies!"
Minority here but i want live action Animal Crossing or Full 3D animation of Animal Crossing.
No Last of Us or Mass Effect on this poll, both heavily story based games. But Pong makes it on here?
This poll feels more like a glorified popularity contest, than what video game franchises would make great movies.
@Heavyarms55 I agree. I might be persuaded to watch a Studio Ghibli Zelda film, though...
Metroid should be on top. So much they could do with a live-action movie, but I am pretty biased. Also, most of these should be animated.
I would want a smash bros anime series or movies or both lol.
@AnnoyingFrenzy
Totally agree 👍
@Toy_Link Exactly. Most ppl vote based on their preferences and what's trending(Fortnite, Smash) rather than reasoning.
@MrDisappointed If it were them, it would be animated, and I'd be very open to that - though I still don't know how you handle a silent protagonist like Link in a movie.
Zelda would likely offer the deeper storyline and could easily become a series with adaptations of the top titles
@Alpha008
Something like the fast and the furious series ?
Personally I'd rather see a Zelda animated movie.
and GTA is more like watching Goodfellas really.
I can’t find anything about it’s current state of development (or lack thereof), but back in 2016 they not only announced a Tetris movie, but also that it would be a trilogy.
@Anti-Matter how would that even work?
Of that list, I think Halo would be the only good one. Maybe Final Fantasy.
@Anti-Matter That sounds great. They could have real animals and dress them up in clothes.
@Anti-Matter Have you seen the 2D animated Animal Crossing movie?
@Heavyarms55 I take it you weren't a fan of the Sonic movie?
@AnnoyingFrenzy
Yes. 😀
From Youtube. 😅
@Not_Soos I can't say, to be fair I have not seen it yet. But I have seen a few clips and been told about it - and I don't like what I've heard.
It says 'movie'. Does that imply live-action rather than animation? The specifics of the terminology escape me. :3
@Anti-Matter Yeah same, it sure is adorable though.
Final Fantasy forfeited their right to make movies after making The Spirits Within exist. I guess the VII movie wasn't entirely bad?
If they were ever going to try a Final Fantasy movie again, I think it'd be best to go for the earliest games, since the games didn't really have established main characters, they wouldn't have to cut out very much of the plot, and they could easily add in more plot if needed.
Mark me down for wanting to see Mario Kart and The Furious, though, if only to see how dumb it is.
Smash movie would be way too expensive with all the characters that are currently playable.
Pac-Man...no.
The only one I could see working well is Grand Theft Auto but even then it'd just be a generic action movie with blowing stuff up, and killing people. It wouldn't be a GTA movie, it'd be a movie.
Although, Red Dead just might work out. Westerns are uncommon these days.
Though one that isn't listed is Overwatch. I'd do anything for an Overwatch movie whether animated or live action. Though preferably animated due to the quality of the shorts but still.
I'm fine with just the games.
@Trajan
First time they tried that it nearly bankrupted Square.
@JR150
Fortnite could also work.
Live action? What would Mario be doing in it? Rescue Peach? Damsel in distress feels SO 2020, doesn't it?
The games don't need much in terms of plot. Movies do. Leave Mario alone, please.
@Heavyarms55
I personally really enjoyed it. Much better than Detective Pikachu, in my opinion, though I have no connection with Pokémon. I enjoyed Sonic enough to see it three times, in fact. Going into it, you just have to accept this isn't the Sonic you're used to, as he's basically a hyperactive kid. This personality can be a little obnoxious at times, but much less so than if they tried to adapt how edgy and "cool" he is in the games, I feel. At least this way, the audience can somewhat connect with him. Jim Carrey's performance was solid, and I think his adaptation of Dr. Robotnik is pretty good.
The special effects are surprisingly really good as well, and there's not many glaring plot holes like I expect from kids movies nowadays. I thought it was pretty well written overall, and the ending was pretty great. (There's an interesting post-credits scene to stick around for, if that hasn't already been spoiled for you.) It's also just genuinely funny. Even my cynical cousin who grew up on Sonic but expected a dumpster fire was pleasantly surprised. I definitely think it's worth your time if you care at all about Sonic. For the record, I'm not the biggest fan of the franchise, but I can appreciate a rare movie adaptation of a game that's actually competent.
No movies please. Even the best live action game movies are mediocre at best. And most are just bad to terrible.
Animated movies are better. But PLEASE NO "Excuuuuse me, Princess"!
@Earl_Grey They could go with Odyssey and make it about exploring. Or Galaxy with Mario in space.
I can remember a live action metroid short that was pretty ace.
But, Bob will always be my Mario.
I saw "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" at the movies in the 1980s, loved it.. Bob Hoskins was great. Then, a few years later, I heard about a new (at the time) Super Mario Bros. movie, also starring Bob Hoskins.. No way was I going to miss seeing that.. All these years later, I still have not been able to make up my mind whether I liked it or not. Not at all what I was expecting. The theme song from Roxette is great though, "Almost Unreal". I have always been a big Roxette fan, was sad to hear about the passing of Marie back in December.
Some people wanted a Pong movie.
Let that sink in.
Tetris and Pong - seriously? How could these make a good movie?
really the world needs a live-action of everything?
I hope they get it, oh I hope they get it hard.
A direct sequel to Super Mario Bros.
That poll is clearly skewed towards the games that are more popular among the general public,instead of the games with the best story.
Pacman,Pong and Tetris?Really?
In the age where animation has long proven to be a relatively superior medium (even after the setback following last decade's crisis which left the much younger CGI school dragging twice the payload in Hollywood), why do people even want live action adaptations of material the many key elements whereof would have to turn to animation regardless? For the sake of a Les Visiteurs plot? Chances are, it's either the convincingly alien designs you loathe like "old movie Sonic" or tacked-on hologram impressions like "new movie Sonic" or fursuits that made C.S. Lewis unwilling to envision and greenlight a Narnia adaptation during his lifetime. I understand the originally photorealistic cases like Uncharted, but Mario and Pac-Man? Instead of, say, hiring Peter Jackson with his experience in fantasy wartime epics and putting him on something like Fire Emblem?
(Granted, I'd rather have Fire Emblem in animated form myself, too, but I'm always biased towards animation - and FWIW the franchise already has an anime OVA batch to its name, more than many other Ninty brands can boast)
What a ridiculous result.
Stuff like Red Dead or Elder Scrolls should be top of the list
This reads like a list of the most recognizable video game characters/IPs rather than a list of the most desired live-action video game adaptations.
How's Grand Theft Auto, Halo, Call of Duty not the top 3?
Although is a bit hard to imagine, i can definitely see how cool and intense a live-action Mario Kart movie would be.
I definitely would welcome a Donkey Kong Country movie in a similar style as Planet of the Apes and King Kong
I keep missing the Sonic movie due to not being able to make the last screening at 5. I know it's mostly for kids but I used to stay up till 9pm when I was 8! I'm sure they could do it on the weekends, but no such luck.
Honestly, though, Call of Duty is kinda like a lot of movies out there. If they focused more on the stealthy missions it could be ok, but other than that it's your standard Rambo kills everyone, especially the brown people. Also, GTA San Andreas had a great plot! It would need a bit of an adaptation but could work. GTA 4 next, then 5 and then the others not quite as much, would just be another Sopranos.
I think CG Donkey Kong would be good, but not live action. My most wanted would be Zelda. CG Gorons, Bokoblins, Moblins and Beast Ganon would be necessary but something akin to the Netflix Witcher would be good otherwise. Mario Kart or Smash would be very hard, do people just want to see a train wreck?
I am still trying to figure out how a Tetris movie would look like
uhhh, who did they survey on this poll? Looks more like they randomly surveyed people and asked them "Name a video game that comes to mind!".
A Legend of Zelda series of movies would actually work well. The rest do not seem to have enough depth without a lot of infusion.
Yes, and this is why there's a big difference between fans and actual filmmakers. Mistakes have been made, but most fans wouldn't make anything better.
The best Pong movie so far
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNIUPhAa1gM
A few of these are being made but in development hell.
Why are Pong and Tetris even on that list?
C’mon now...Metroid narrowly beat Pong?! They could do a great Metroid movie with the right script.
Kingdom Hearts
@Not_Soos Well I'm glad you and others seem to enjoy it. I find the whole general idea of live action adaptations like this to be repulsive at the most basic level.
But I'll probably at least try to watch it, if it ends up on Netflix at some point and I wont just declare the film bad until I actually see it.
At the very least, it has to be better then the last Mario Bros. movie, no way it could be worse.
I remember the day I saw that movie! While leaving the parking lot, I was in such a daze about the horribleness of the movie that I rear-ended Kevin James' Mercedes.
@GoddessPhoebe
What's wrong with a pong Movie?
@KingKRoolMain I dunno, I just don't see any kind of movie potential in it. An animated short, sure. But I don't see how you could fill an hour and a half run time with Pong.
I'd actually be interested in an Oregon Trail movie
Well, if they can make a movie about "Battleship," I suppose it's theoretically possible to make one for "Tetris" or "Pong"...
@SwitchLife Those already exist. They're called documentaries.
@Toy_Link Although, heavy story-based games may not make good film adaptations, as they'd have very little freedom to take artistic liberties with the original source material without heavy complaints, and if they do manage to remain strictly faithful to the story, why bother with a movie when you can just rewatch the game's cutscenes or a Let's Play on YouTube?
At least with book adaptations, there's a certain artistic flair and consumer curiosity in turning text into video, something that doesn't exist when the original source material already consists of video.
@BulbasaurusRex Games like Mass Effect, Last of Us, Uncharted, Bioshock, etc could definitely work. Easily. Even with a few ratification adaptions.
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