Nintendo Wants To Be “Even More Actively Involved” In Moviemaking

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Nintendo’s first movie, The Super Mario Bros. Movie, was a huge hit, earning over $1.3 billion globally. They’re building on that success with The Super Mario Galaxy Movie planned for 2026, and a live-action Legend of Zelda film coming in 2027. Nintendo is also considering making even more movies based on its popular games and wants to play a bigger role in the filmmaking process in the future.

In Nintendo’s recent financial report, President Shuntaro Furukawa explained that the company is interested in producing movies. Nintendo sees films as valuable, lasting properties that can contribute to its success beyond the gaming world.

I was really excited to hear Nintendo is experimenting with video content, like those adorable Pikmin shorts – that’s all thanks to their internal team, Nintendo Pictures! But it sounds like when it comes to full-length movies, Nintendo is teaming up with big Hollywood studios like Universal and Illumination to actually make those films. So Nintendo Pictures is doing the creative stuff and testing the waters, but the pros in filmmaking will bring the big-screen versions to life.

As a big fan, I always feel reassured when I hear things like this from industry leaders. Furukawa basically said that the movie business has a proven system – letting distribution companies handle things – and sticking to that system, while also making sure the movies are well-made, usually means success and profits. It’s good to know there’s a reliable path to getting great films made!

Hollywood has a reliable and well-tested way of doing things, according to Furukawa. However, Nintendo Pictures is a new division aiming to explore uncharted territory and experiment with new ideas.

Nintendo recently released the Pikmin-themed ‘Close to You’ short as a test project. According to Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa, they hope to create more content like this to excite fans worldwide and build it into a key part of Nintendo’s offerings.

Currently, Nintendo has only announced a live-action movie based on The Legend of Zelda. However, there’s been talk about a potential Donkey Kong movie in the future.

Nintendo recently shared its approach to making movies based on its games. Unlike simply allowing other studios to use their characters, Nintendo actively participates in funding and closely oversees the entire production process. For example, Shigeru Miyamoto was a producer on The Super Mario Bros. Movie and will continue in that role for both The Super Mario Galaxy Movie and the new Zelda movie, which has just started filming in New Zealand.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie was a massive success, earning $1.36 billion worldwide. It was the second highest-grossing film of 2023, just behind Barbie ($1.44 billion), and currently ranks as the 18th highest-grossing movie of all time.

Nintendo reported that the movie was a hit with everyone – from longtime Mario fans to people who don’t usually play games, and audiences of all ages, young and old. They were especially happy with the positive feedback they received, saying it meant even more to them than just how well the movie performed.

Nintendo is currently experiencing a surge in its gaming business, largely driven by the successful launch of the Switch 2. The console has already sold over 10 million units, making it Nintendo’s quickest-selling system to date. The company is optimistic about holiday sales and has increased its sales forecast for the console from 15 million to 19 million units for the year ending March 2026.

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2025-11-07 18:10