In 2013, Disney released its newest princess movie, Frozen. Frozen told the story of Princess Elsa, a young woman who stayed out of the spotlight as her family tried to hide her magical powers from everyone. This included Elsa’s younger sister, Anna. However, Elsa’s powers emerged when she became queen of Arendelle. Elsa ran off to be by herself, but Anna convinced her to come back and save the people of Arendelle. The film was a hit and is one of the most successful movies of all time.
Six years later, Disney released the highly-anticipated Frozen sequel. While not as successful as the original film, Frozen II was still a hit and broke the record for the highest-grossing opening for an animated film. Frozen II didn’t just break the record, it crushed it. It looked like Disney’s Frozen franchise could not be touched. And then Universal decided to jump into the fray.
On April 5, Universal and Illumination released The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which was based on the hit video game franchise. While the initial previews didn’t go over too well with a lot of people, they still flocked to see it. The Super Mario Bros. Movie soared at the box office and surpassed Frozen II and now is in the number one spot for highest-grossing animated film opening.
Here’s more on The Super Mario Bros. opening weekend’s surprise success. Per The Wrap:
Domestically, “Mario” was projected when it opened in theaters on Wednesday to earn a five-day opening of at least $125 million from 4,343 theaters, and it has shattered that figure with $204.6 million grossed. Both that and its three-day total of $143 million are a studio record for Illumination, with the three-day total being the third highest seen on Easter weekend and second only to the $182 million earned by Pixar’s “Incredibles 2” among all animated films. It is also the new animation record holder for Imax with $21.6 million grossed worldwide.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie not only had the highest opening ever, but it blew by every other video game adaptation that has hit the market. Universal’s head of domestic distribution, Jim Orr, thought that it was due to the fact that the film was able to successfully expand on an already legendary franchise:
“This weekend’s record-breaking debut proves audiences of all ages and demographics will pour into theaters for a hysterically funny and authentic universe expansion of an already iconic franchise,” said Universal’s domestic distribution president Jim Orr. “Nintendo and Illumination’s creative synergy along with Shigeru Miyamoto and Chris Meledandri’s extraordinary leadership created an entertaining juggernaut that will be sure to power up the box office for weeks to come.”
The Super Mario Bros. Movie is currently in theaters. The movie stars Guardians of the Galaxy actor Chris Pratt as Mario. Charlie Day voices Luigi, Anya Taylor-Joy voices Princess Peach, and Jack Black is the voice of Bowser. The movie tells the story of Mario, who must journey through the Mushroom Kingdom to save Luigi from the clutches of the evil King Bowser.
