Super Mario Galaxy Movie: Cast, Box Office & Every Leak
A month before release, the internet was running on leaks: Rosalina is in it, Bowser Jr. is the villain, Mario's going to space. Half the fanbase called fake. Well the Super Mario Galaxy Movie has been out since April 1, 2026, it's made over a billions of dollars, and almost everyone of those leaks turned out to be true. Let's do the full breakdown.
The leaks vs. reality
The big pre-release rumors said three things: the film would adapt the Super Mario Galaxy games' cosmic setting, Brie Larson would voice Rosalina, and Bowser Jr. would step up as the main villain with Bowser himself sidelined. All three were dead on. The November 2025 trailer confirmed Rosalina and Bowser Jr., the January 2026 trailer revealed Yoshi (voiced by Donald Glover, as leaked), and the final trailer even snuck in Fox McCloud voiced by Glen Powell, which genuinely nobody saw coming.
Honestly? This is how you do a leak cycle. The rumors built and create strong hype for months, and the movie delivered on all of them instead of swerving. Respect.
The full cast
The 2023 crew is all back: Chris Pratt (Mario), Anya Taylor-Joy (Peach), Charlie Day (Luigi), Jack Black (Bowser), and Keegan-Michael Key (Toad). New additions: Brie Larson as Rosalina, Benny Safdie as Bowser Jr., Donald Glover as Yoshi, and Glen Powell as Fox McCloud. Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic returned to direct, with Matthew Fogel on the script and Miyamoto himself co-producing.
Larson as Rosalina is the casting coup here — she grew up a Nintendo kid and it shows in every line reading. Safdie playing Bowser Jr. like a theater kid desperate for his dad's approval is the film's secret weapon.
The plot (no major spoilers)
Mario, Luigi, Peach, Toad and Yoshi get pulled into outer space, where Bowser Jr. tired of living in his father's shadow and hatches a plan to restore the Koopa name by, uh, destroying the universe. The gang teams up with Rosalina and the Lumas to stop him. It's Galaxy 1 & 2 with Star Fox seasoning, and the zero-gravity set pieces are the best Illumination has ever animated.
$1 billion and a critic-audience war
Here's the wild part: critics were brutal — 42% on Rotten Tomatoes, with the consensus basically being "gorgeous screensaver, thin plot." Audiences? 88% Popcornmeter. And the box office picked a side: roughly $1.013 billion worldwide on a $110 million budget, making it the fifth-highest-grossing film of 2026 and the second-biggest video game movie ever, behind only its own predecessor ($1.36B).
My take: The critics aren't wrong about the plot being loose, but they're reviewing the wrong movie. This is a theme-park ride, not a drama — and as a ride, it's elite.
Where to watch
After its theatrical run, the film hit digital platforms in May 2026, with Blu-ray/4K following June 16. It's expected on Peacock around late July 2026 and Netflix US near the end of the year. At 98 minutes, it's the perfect family movie night pick.
The verdict
The leaks were real, the cast is stacked, and a billion dollars doesn't lie. The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is proof that video game movies aren't a fluke anymore and they're the most reliable blockbusters in Hollywood.
Related: Pixar's Hoppers Review: Is Pixar Finally Back? — another 2026 animated hit, reviewed.
