Does Charles Martinet appear in ‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie?’

Warning: This article contains spoilers for The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

While not everyone was happy that Chris Pratt voiced Mario in The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Nintendo and Illumination made sure that Charles Martinet wasn’t forgotten. For those who don’t know, Martinet is the voice actor for Mario, Luigi, and a handful of Super Mario characters in the video games. He is a legend in video game history and fans called upon both Nintendo and Illumination to change their decision and have Martinet star in the film instead.

Although Pratt wasn’t replaced, fortunately, the OG Super Mario voice actor was not forgotten either. When the film was first announced back in 2021, Nintendo confirmed that Martinet will receive a handful of roles in the film and it’s up to fans to figure out which characters he played. But just in case you’ve missed it, here are the roles that Martinet played in The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

Who does Charles Martinet play in The Super Mario Bros. Movie?

Martinet played two named characters in The Super Mario Bros. Movie. And while these appearances were brief, they’re certainly scattered so it doesn’t seem like he has a one-off role that’s only seen in a single scene. What’s interesting about these roles is that Martinet was able to showcase more of his voice-acting talent to the point where he’s somewhat unrecognizable until you see his name in the credits.

The first named character that Martinet voiced was Giuseppe. This one is easy to spot since he used the iconic Mario/Italian accent for this character. Giuseppe isn’t a real character in the Super Mario video games, and was instead created by fans. According to fan headcanon, Giuseppe is seen as Mario and Luigi’s secret third brother who lives a more mundane life compared to the two Mario Brothers.

This fan-made character made its way to The Super Mario Bros. Movie but not as a secret third brother. In the film, he was more of a friend and a strong supporter of the Mario Bros. He also wore an outfit that somewhat resembles Mario’s outfit, with some color changes.

The second named character that Martinet played in The Super Mario Bros. Movie is surprising: Mario and Luigi’s father. Without watching the credits, you may think that someone else was voicing this character, when in reality, it was Martinet. Kinda poetic if you think about it since, he was the original Mario voice actor.

In the film, he looked down on his sons, perhaps concerned about their life choices, and believes that they could do better. Fortunately, Mario and Luigi’s father would learn about his sons’ true potential by the end of the film.

It was unfortunate that Martinet was unable to voice Mario in The Super Mario Bros. Movie. But these new roles gave the voice actor the opportunity to showcase his voice acting prowess rather than pigeonholing him as “just Mario.” If you want to see Martinet showcase more of his voice acting talent, The Super Mario Bros. Movie hits theaters on April 5, 2023.