“It’s Truly Baffling”: Shigeru Miyamoto Responds to Super Mario Galaxy Movie Reviews as Film Races Toward $1 Billion

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The creator of Mario has responded to the mixed critical reception of the new animated movie, which received a 43% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Despite the critics, audiences are loving it, giving it an 89% approval rating, and the film is breaking box office records globally.

Shigeru Miyamoto, the famous creator behind Mario, has publicly responded to the negative reviews of The Super Mario Bros. Movie. He said he was very surprised by the harsh criticism, especially since the sequel received even worse reviews than the first film. He shared these thoughts with Japanese media during an interview celebrating the movie’s release in Japan, sparking a discussion about why critics and audiences often disagree about Nintendo’s films.

Shigeru Miyamoto on Super Mario Galaxy Movie Reviews: “Even Harsher Than Last Time”

In an interview with NDW, reported by GameSpot and Nintendo Life and translated by Nintendo Patents Watch, Shigeru Miyamoto addressed the largely negative reviews of the new Super Mario Bros. Movie. He admitted that he understood some of the criticism of the first film, but hoped the sequel would be better received. Unfortunately, he found the criticism for the new movie to be even stronger than before.

He said the reaction was more than just surprising. They had tried to boost the film industry by offering support, but he found it strange that the people who should be encouraging it were actually being critical.

This is a remarkably honest and direct statement from Miyamoto, who rarely discusses reception to Nintendo’s work so openly. It naturally leads to the question: shouldn’t critics honestly evaluate games, rather than simply support the industry? It seems this difference in perspective is what’s bothering Miyamoto.

The Numbers: Critics vs. Audiences on the Super Mario Galaxy Movie Reviews

The difference between what critics and audiences thought of The Super Mario Bros. Movie is unusually large compared to most recent big releases.

The film has received mixed reviews. Critics on Rotten Tomatoes gave it a 43% approval rating, which is lower than the 59% score of the first film. However, audiences loved it, giving it an 89% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Metacritic gave the film a score of 37, indicating generally negative reviews from critics.

Most critics agree the movie, like its predecessor, focuses too much on inside jokes and references for fans instead of a strong story and well-developed characters. While many acknowledged the animation was visually impressive, they found the plot lacking. However, audiences – especially families and longtime Nintendo fans – have enjoyed it, and that positive reaction is reflected in the movie’s box office success.

What Critics Said: The Core Complaint Behind the Shigeru Miyamoto Super Mario Galaxy Movie Reviews Controversy

People aren’t criticizing The Super Mario Bros. Movie just because it’s made for kids. Many great animated films for families exist, like those from Pixar or Spider-Verse, proving the format can be fantastic. The problem with this movie isn’t that it’s animated; it’s that it relies on viewers recognizing Mario characters and places instead of creating genuine emotional connections. The story feels like a series of action sequences strung together without building to a satisfying conclusion.

As GameSpot pointed out when reporting on Miyamoto’s views, professional critics aren’t usually expected to actively promote the gaming industry. Good criticism should instead help improve creative projects and give audiences fresh ways of looking at them.

The most debated part of Miyamoto’s statement was his suggestion that critics should be thankful a company from a different entertainment field is trying to boost the film industry. Many have countered that strong, honest criticism is always necessary, no matter who creates a film or how successful it is.

Box Office Context: Why Shigeru Miyamoto’s Super Mario Galaxy Movie Reviews Response Matters Less Financially

Despite what reviewers say, the film’s box office results prove it’s a huge success by any standard.

Okay, so I’ve been keeping up with the box office, and The Super Mario Bros. Movie is absolutely crushing it! It was number one for three weeks straight, and it’s already made more money this year than any other film – over $355 million in the US and $747.5 million worldwide! And get this, that was before it even came out in Japan. It only cost $110 million to make, and everyone’s predicting it’s going to be the first movie this year to hit $1 billion globally. Seriously, it’s a huge win for Nintendo and Illumination!

I’m so excited to see how well the Super Mario Bros. movies are doing! With the first one making $1.3 billion worldwide, and the new one adding to that total, the franchise has now earned over $2 billion globally – and that’s just after two films! It’s amazing to see Mario doing so well on the big screen.

Miyamoto’s openness about his disappointment with the film’s reviews is likely due to its financial success. With the movie already earning close to $750 million worldwide before its release in a key market, the studio isn’t worried about negative feedback impacting ticket sales. While the reviews have damaged the film’s reputation, they haven’t affected its box office performance.

Japan Release and the Unique Japanese Script

Miyamoto explained that the Japanese release of the film is special. Unlike their usual process of creating an English version first and then adapting it for other countries, they developed the English and Japanese scripts for this film at the same time. He’s optimistic about the film’s success in Japan and emphasized that the localization wasn’t just a simple translation; it received extra attention to detail.

The original Super Mario Bros. Movie did incredibly well in Japan, earning about $102 million – a rare achievement for a Western animated film there. Because of this success, there’s a lot of anticipation for the opening of the new Galaxy film in Japan.

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: The Following Section Discusses a Plot Point from The Super Mario Galaxy Movie

Peach’s Story and What It Could Mean for Future Nintendo Games

In the same interview, Shigeru Miyamoto also discussed the film’s story, specifically Princess Peach’s backstory. According to VGC, he expressed a desire to incorporate that backstory into future games as much as possible. This is significant because Miyamoto has traditionally kept the stories of Mario games separate from other Mario media. It suggests the new film could influence the overall Mario universe in a bigger way. However, VGC points out that this isn’t a confirmed permanent change – it “may remain canon” – so it’s best to wait for official announcements through future game releases before considering it fully established.

What Comes Next for Nintendo on Screen

Nintendo’s upcoming live-action Legend of Zelda movie is set to release on May 7, 2027. Filming has finished, and sneak peeks from the set have already gotten fans excited. The success of the Super Mario movies – despite some debate over reviews – has encouraged Nintendo and its collaborators to create more films. It’s still unknown if the Zelda movie will tell its story in a significantly different way than the Mario movies.

As a big Nintendo fan, I’ve been following their retro game releases closely, and it’s exciting to see them leaning into classics! If you’re curious about how these older games fit into Nintendo’s plans, especially with the movie coming out in 2026, I’d recommend checking out a list of all the GameCube games now available on Nintendo Switch Online. It also might be helpful to read a review to see if the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack is worth the money this year.

Shigeru Miyamoto’s response to the movie reviews is reasonable, considering his perspective, but he seems to be overlooking the critics’ main concerns. While it’s true audiences are enjoying the film and it’s a box office success, critics have consistently pointed out a lack of depth in the story. Nintendo and Illumination have now made two movies with this same issue, and haven’t seemed interested in fixing it, despite clear feedback.

Honestly, I’m really curious to see if Nintendo will shake things up for the next movie. The first two did pretty well, so they might not need to change much, but I’m hoping they’ll still try something new. It all comes down to whether the money keeps rolling in, I guess, and if that’s enough to keep things as they are.

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2026-04-23 04:07