Charles Martinet, the guy who provided the voice for that lovable plumber Mario since 1991, and for the first time on a game in 1996’s Super Mario 64, is stepping back from the mic.
Martinet, 67, voiced Mario’s dad, Giuseppe, for Chris Pratt‘s Mario in the blockbuster The Super Mario Bros. Movie, but Nintendo of America now says the former is “moving into the brand-new role as our Mario Ambassador.”
The video game giant’s message to “fans of the Mushroom Kingdom” continues, “With this transition, he’ll be stepping back from recording character voices for our games, but he’ll continue to travel the world sharing the joy of Mario and interacting with you all!”
The company called it an “honor” to have worked with Martinet all these years and told fans to keep an eye out for a special message from him and Shigeru Miyamoto, the legendary creator of Donkey Kong, Mario Bros. and The Legend of Zelda, among others.
Despite early online grumbling that Pratt was wrong for the Super Mario Bros. Movie role, fans certainly showed up to cheer him on, to the tune of more than $1.35 billion at the global box office.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie is now streaming on Peacock.
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