The Best Super Mario Bros. Movie Character Cameos, Ranked
Contains spoilers for "The Super Mario Bros. Movie"
"The Super Mario Bros. Movie" is proving itself to be a crossover hit between Nintendo fans young and old alike. This is yet another modernized feather in the cap for video games-turned-movies. With fun blockbusters like "Mortal Kombat," the "Sonic the Hedgehog" franchise films, and even a new "Street Fighter" movie in the works, the big screen is prepping itself to be quite the playground for nostalgic gamers.
The main cast includes the most familiar of the bunch: Mario, Luigi, Peach, Toad, Donkey Kong, and Bowser. That said, this flick is also filled to the brim with fun references, deep cuts, and interesting character cameos. While some of these appearances are of the blink-and-you'll-miss-it variety, other appearances of these minor icons do play more involved roles. With so many cameos from so many corners of the Mario canon, one must wonder, which distinctive additions are the coolest? Here's a ranked list of the best ones in "The Super Mario Bros. Movie."
12. Yoshi
Yoshi occupies a fascinating space within the "Mario" lore as the primary caretaker of both Mario and Luigi as babies. Obviously, this is not the same origin story that the film went with, instead choosing to characterize Mario's earlier NES and arcade games. As far as the franchise is concerned, Yoshi is a perpetual mainstay. He is likely the most known of all the characters on this list, so why is he a cameo?
Well, when heading out on his hero's journey, Mario and company very briefly encounter a stampede of wild Yoshis, and a pink one stops to watch them pass. This is all we get, besides the post-credits teaser of an egg cracking. Yoshi is the most popular character in the "Mario" universe, and judging from the end credits teaser, it seems like the adorable green dino is going to have his day in the upcoming sequel. It would be silly to fault Nintendo for not unveiling Yoshi immediately ... but they still could have included a little more Yoshi content. We're given so little of Yoshi, that I have no choice but to designate his cameo as the weakest of the bunch. I also have a feeling Nintendo's being coy on purpose, though.
11. King Boo
In the games, Boos have been around for a while, but King Boo's first appearance was actually as the big bad of "Luigi's Mansion." Since then, King Boo has been known to partner with Bowser across several games. It's important to note that he is not one of Bowser's minions; he's a king himself with his own motivations. In "Mario" sports games involving teams, King Boo and Bowser are shown to have chemistry, but they're not always naturally paired. In "Mario Kart Double Dash," King Boo's partner is Petey Piranha. In "Mario Super Sluggers," he's actually paired up with Wario.
I was personally hoping for a Boo to make some sort of appearance, especially because of the spooky situation Luigi winds up in. I had almost given up hope. Then, at the beginning of the climactic sequence, he appears. King Boo, the king of the Boos, arrives as a guest at Bowser's wedding. This cameo is not very involved. It's nothing more than a fun sighting. That said, it's better than Yoshi's mostly-lack-of-a-sighting because at least King Boo isn't a character you would immediately expect to appear. King Boo is also largely inconsequential to the story or the action, preventing him from ranking any higher.
10. Pauline
In the games, Pauline first appears as the damsel in distress in the original "Donkey Kong." She maintains this role in the "Mario vs. Donkey Kong" handheld games series. It's not until "Super Mario Odyssey" that she is revealed to have become the esteemed mayor of New Donk City. From that point onward, she's been integrated into many of the more recent "Mario" sports games.
Pauline's appearance in the film is quite brief. She shows up on the news, describing the giant manhole leak that is causing damage to the city. This leads to more questions than answers for me. Where is New Donk City? Will New York City become New Donk City in a potential sequel? Perhaps this is a glimpse of early Pauline before her meteoric rise to political power. This appearance really was a flash in the pan, but it's still nice to see. Pauline gets some lines, and we get to learn that she possibly started off as a newscasting Brooklynite. That's a little bit more substantive than the previous entries, but not by much.
9. Diddy, Dixie, and Chunky Kong
While Donkey Kong may be a predictable inclusion in the film, what is unexpected is his gaggle of friends and relatives. Diddy Kong is Donkey Kong's best friend and sidekick; Dixie Kong is Diddy Kong's girlfriend; and Chunky Kong is Dixie Kong's cousin. Diddy is the most well-known of the three, having his own spinoff series, and being the inventive and nimble foil to Donkey Kong's simplicity and strength. Dixie is kind of a cheerful tomboy whose ponytail acts like a helicopter blade. Chunky Kong is a rather clumsy gentle giant.
"The Super Mario Bros. Movie" does not go to great lengths to show the unique personalities of these Kong clan members. The most we get is some overenthusiastic cheering from Diddy that is quickly silenced by Cranky Kong. This is accompanied by a shot of the three standing together in the arena, and the movie moves on. There isn't a demonstration of their traits or abilities. They're just there to watch the fight. Arguably, these Kongs contribute even less to the story than Pauline. But their cameo ranks a step above because of the shock factor. I'm not even entirely certain Dixie and Chunky Kong have seen Mario before in the games.
8. King Bomb-Omb
King Bomb-Omb from "Super Mario 64" makes an appearance at Bowser's wedding, entering alongside King Boo. In the games, he behaves like a gentlemanly oaf. Being a Bomb-Omb, he also has a tendency to explode. Many games in the "Mario Party" franchise feature a board where King Bomb-Omb silently, happily menaces the players, never unprepared to explode and take half of your coins away.
But is he a silent menace in "The Super Mario Bros. Movie?" Yes, he absolutely is. Somehow, King Bomb-Omb manages to fall asleep during the wedding. Even when Peach is loudly attacking every minion present with her ice powers, this king is asleep. Of course, his fuse gets lit in the midst of the chaos, and just like in "Mario Party," he blows up. Yes, we get to see one of his iconic explosions. He's the first character on this list who actually does something. I do feel like his blast is particularly underwhelming and glossed over. It should have been much more consequential. He's a king.
7. Unagi the Eel
Remember that one part of "Super Mario 64" that maybe you were too young for? No, I'm not talking about the crushing feeling of dread as you view a photorealistic drowning animation of your beloved Mario. I'm talking about that other part. You know, the part with the giant eel that has razor-sharp teeth and eyes the size of dinner plates?
Yeah, Unagi's in "The Super Mario Bros. Movie." As a giant horrifying eel ought to do, it shows up and immediately swallows both Mario and Donkey Kong at the most inconvenient time for them, while Peach is captured. Unagi does serve a significant purpose, and the two heroes do have a much-needed heart-to-heart in the belly of this beast. After they fight their way out, we don't really see much more of Unagi, though. It is a surprisingly vital and useful inclusion, but Mario and DK escape so easily that it reduces Unagi to being more of a plot device than a genuine challenge.
6. Snifit and the Shy Guys
This next cameo sounds like a rad band name: Snifit and the Shy Guys. In the game franchise, both the Snifits and the Shy Guys appear in "Super Mario Bros. 2." They aren't even Bowser's minions at first, and are instead the main troops of a toad named Wart. (By "toad" I mean the kind that looks like a frog, not a mushroom-headed humanoid.) The Shy Guys specifically are quite employable little dudes. They work for Bowser sometimes, they help run minigames when there's a Mario Party, and they even play tennis. Shy Guys are much more common than Snifits. Snifits look like Shy Guys, but instead wear black masks and have the added ability to shoot little metal balls from the nozzle.
In "The Super Mario Bros. Movie," this group behaves as a well-oiled military machine. Luigi, lost in the dark woods of Bowser's domain, winds up in the destroyed penguin castle, where he is instantly captured by a group of Shy Guys led by a Snifit. You can tell Snifit is the leader of the pack because Snifit gets to be the one to formally present the intruder to Bowser. I really like the subtlety of this inclusion. As a cameo, the group occupies this space in the ranking because they directly interact with the main cast, even as minions. These Shy Guys are more than spectators of the story.
5. Kamek
Kamek is far from an obscurity in Mario's world. This Magikoopa has been causing trouble since "Yoshi's Island" in 1995. He often appears as Bowser's right-hand man, and for good reason. Kamek's magical abilities are incredibly strong, and this makes him one of Bowser's most trusted and high-ranking officers. Kamek is the dude who shows up when there are five turns left of a "Mario Party" game and turns every red space into a Bowser space. That's how powerful he can be.
Kamek's role in "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" is largely no different from the one he plays in the games. With a flick of his wand, Kamek can paralyze and torture his foes, generate portals, and dress like Princess Peach to engage in a romantic roleplay with Bowser. Okay, he didn't need magic for that third one, but it did happen. (It's also an Easter egg from "Mario & Luigi Dream Team." Kamek loves a nice dress.) Kamek's representation in the film is very well done and fully encapsulates the personality we see in the games. It's a little predictable that Kamek would be present if Bowser is in the film, but I'm glad he got as much attention as he did.
4. Cranky Kong
Mario and the Kongs have a well-known history that goes way back to the arcade era, so it's unsurprising that we are also exposed to some Kong action in the film. What's a little shocking is the amount of quality time we get to spend with Cranky Kong. In the games, this grumpy old coot was actually the original Donkey Kong, and the Donkey Kong we know now is his grandson.
His status is different between the movie and the "Donkey Kong Country" games. In the games, he's just an elderly Kong who's always nagging and owns a slightly run-down shack. In "The Super Mario Bros. Movie," he's still sassy and has that shack, but he is somehow the King of the Kongs and the Jungle Kingdom. He immediately rejects Princess Peach's bid for an alliance with comments soaked in sarcasm. Cranky even heckles his own son (yes, Donkey Kong's his son in the film) in the middle of his arena fight against Mario. His role proves itself to be unexpectedly significant and leads to an interesting bonding moment between Mario and DK. I really like this inclusion quite a bit. Cranky Kong could have easily not been a part of the film at all. Instead, we get a wonderful Fred Armisen rendition of this grumpy elder.
3. Foreman Spike
Foreman Spike's first appearance in the Nintendo canon is in the 1985 NES game "Wrecking Crew." In it, he's not a nice dude. The objective of "Wrecking Crew" ought to be simple: break down all the walls, and you pass the level. This task is no longer straightforward once Spike shows up. This little idiot likes to chase Mario all over the stage just to knock our hero off the ledge.
Outside of "Wrecking Crew," Spike hasn't made many significant appearances in other games outside of the occasional costume for Mario and in a "WarioWare" minigame. This makes his role in "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" an unexpected surprise, as he plays Mario and Luigi's naysaying former boss. Spike's inclusion in the film is a choice that fascinates me, because of the gaming era he represents. The man's quite literally a relic — a representation of the early life of "Mario Bros." before becoming the "Mario Bros." The fact that "Wrecking Crew" was released only three months prior to the iconic first "Super Mario Bros." video game colors this nicely. The cameo takes an underutilized character and brings them to life in a way that alludes to the "Mario" franchise history itself. I feel like that aspect could have been emphasized more, but it's an inspired development.
2. Lumalee
Lumalee appears as a helpful shopkeeper in the "Super Mario Galaxy" game series. If there's a boss battle coming up, you can pretty much expect Lumalee to be at the entrance. Hand over 30 Star Bits, and Lumalee will gladly transform into a mushroom of your choosing that will give you some extra health or an extra life.
We learn a bit more about Lumalee in "The Super Mario Bros Movie." Audiences meet Lumalee in a cage precariously hovering above Bowser's lava pit with the other prisoners. In a show-stealing performance, this little creature fully embraces the inevitability of death with relentless childlike excitement. Yes, you heard me right. The life-giver relishes the ultimate end. Lumalee even expresses profound sorrow when it's rescued from the clutches of death. This doomsaying is complimented by the tiny voice of one of the co-directors daughters, Juliet Jelenic, to maximum comedic effect. This light-hearted cameo truly steals the movie. Lumalee definitely seemed like the production team's mascot, and you can tell.
1. Dry Bones
First appearing in "Super Mario Bros. 3," Dry Bones is a unique variant of a Koopa Troopa that is made exclusively of bones. You're only going to find him in deserts, castles, and dungeons. The fun thing about this "Mario" enemy is his immortality. Yes, you can jump on his head and he'll fall to pieces, but the bones will always eventually come back together.
The use of Dry Bones as a cameo in "The Super Mario Bros. Movie" is particularly inspiring. Mario and Luigi are split up when first entering the big green pipe; Mario is sent to Mushroom Kingdom, while poor Luigi is tossed toward Bowser's Castle. When Luigi wakes up in the woods, who does he face other than a horde of Dry Bones? Now, what's extra cool about this encounter is that we actually get to see Dry Bones' specific game mechanic play out on screen. We see one fall to pieces and re-form. The other entries on this list felt like fun inclusions, but Dry Bones' appearance seemed like a seamless part of the movie itself. There are many different kinds of enemies that could have been the first Luigi sees in the woods. It really was perfect timing to toss in the army of skeletons with bright red eyes.