The Success of ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ at the 2026 Box Office

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‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ has become the first film in 2026 to surpass $1 billion in box office earnings. Released on April 1, 2026, this collaboration between Illumination, Nintendo, and Universal reached this milestone in its tenth week. It is now the top-grossing movie of the year, outpacing the closest competitor by over $100 million.

Following ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie,’ other leading films include the Michael Jackson biopic ‘Michael’ with $888 million and ‘Project Hail Mary’ with $679 million. These figures are provided by Box Office Mojo.

The success of ‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ is not just significant due to its earnings; it is also the second highest-grossing movie adapted from a video game, trailing only 2023’s ‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie.’ The earlier film earned $1.3 billion worldwide, establishing a new record for video game adaptations by being the first to exceed the billion-dollar mark.

Together, these two films have propelled the ‘Super Mario’ franchise into one of the most financially successful in the industry. Combined, they have grossed $2 billion, allowing them to rank ninth among the world’s largest animated franchises. Impressively, this was achieved with just two films, surpassing the seven ‘Madagascar’ films, which amassed $2.26 billion in total.

Additionally, the ‘Super Mario’ franchise is Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri’s third series to make it into the top ten since founding the company in 2007.

Biggest Animated Franchises of All Time

Despicable Me, $5.64B (6 films)

Shrek, $3.98B (6 films)

Toy Story, $3.28B (5 films)

Ice Age, $3.22B (5 films)

Zootopia, $2.89B (2 films)

Frozen, $2.73B (2 films)

Inside Out, $2.56B (2 films)

Kung Fu Panda, $2.37B (4 films)

Super Mario films, $2.30B (2 films)

Madagascar, $2.26B (7 films)

Universal is seeing great success in 2026. Upcoming releases include Steven Spielberg’s sci-fi movie ‘Disclosure Day’ and Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey.’ The latter is expected to join the billion-dollar club. Furthermore, Universal and Illumination will release ‘Minions & Monsters’ in July 2026. A third ‘Super Mario Bros’ movie is anticipated for 2028, hinting at continued growth for this fruitful partnership.

Top 10 Highest-Grossing Films of 2026

‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ — $1,000,028,930

‘Michael’ — $888,066,424

‘Project Hail Mary’ — $679,728,026

‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’ — $663,570,934

‘Pegasus 3’ — $656,459,523

‘Hoppers’ — $372,010,783

‘Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu’ — $293,622,349

‘Wuthering Heights’ — $241,601,072

‘Obsession’ — $224,795,930

‘Blades of the Guardians’ — $215,363,913

‘The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ Cast

The movie features Chris Pratt and Charlie Day as Mario and Luigi, respectively. Anya Taylor-Joy returns as Peach, Keegan-Michael Key as Toad, and Jack Black as Bowser. The full cast includes: