The Mario movie was huge — but which Nintendo game comes next?

Nintendo and Illumination’s Super Mario Bros. Movie is the second-highest-grossing movie of the year, just behind the box-office phenomenon known as Barbie. The logical question to ask of Nintendo’s partnership with the maker of Minions and Despicable Me is: What’s next?

Nintendo fans dreamed up a Super Smash Bros. world where Mario, Link Kirby Captain Falcon and Samus Aran would all be together. Endgame-style, to defeat… I don’t know, a giant white glove? Giga Bowser? It’s fun to imagine, but how likely is it? Nintendo is a cautious company, and it’s only begun to wade into the media of cinema with Super Mario Bros. Movie.

To give you a clear idea of what the Nintendo Cinematic Universe could be, and how it might continue to develop in the future, I have ranked the options below.

1. Super Mario Bros. Movie 2

Image: Nintendo, Illumination/Universal Pictures

If you’re still imagining a full-court-press expansion of the NCU through a Legend of Zelda movie or Metroid, it is time to accept the reality. After all, the box office for the first two films has topped $1.3 billion. Super Mario Bros. MovieNintendo and Illumination have made the right decision to produce a direct follow-up. That very thing was teased at the conclusion of Mario, Luigi, and Peach’s extremely successful movie; seemingly it will focus on a Yoshi running wild in the streets (or sewers) of Brooklyn.

This certainly isn’t the worst possibility! There are plenty of Super Mario characters that deserve the big-screen treatment, like the Koopalings and Bowser Jr. I’d personally love to see Illumination flip the script and make Super Mario Bros. Movie 2 a rescue movie about the Koopa Kids rescuing Bowser from his Mushroom Kingdom prison — inject some heart into it as the kids reconnect with their absent father. The bolder choice would be to lean into the “2” here and give Wart another shot at being the villain.

2. Pikmin

Shigeru Meledandri, CEO of Illumination and Nintendo’s creative colleague Shigeru Meledandri is a big fan of the Pikmin series. Pikmin are not only vaguely Minions-like, making them perfect fodder for the kind of physical comedy Illumination trades in, but the narrative setup for the Pikmin franchise is also a solid framework for a kids’ movie.

Pikmin movies could also feature an intrepid team of space-explorers searching for their new home. The team would fight against Bulborbs and other threats on an hospitable planet. They could even encounter a long-lost explorer — Captain Olimar, perhaps, voiced by Chris Pratt — who has been stranded there for years and is desperate to be rescued, having falsified data about the planet’s sustainability for humanoid life. Olimar’s isolation and the Pikmin that accompanied him would have driven him mad. He then turned on those who rescued him, making him a villain. Does this play a part in the plot? Interstellar? Yes. But kids don’t deserve a shocking, dark sci-fi twist in their animated comedies, do they? My argument is that they should.

Nintendo has already tested the waters of Pikmin animation with a series of shorts — and if there’s one thing the game maker excels at, it’s iterating on good ideas to make them great.

3. Kirby

Image: HAL Laboratory/Nintendo

Kirby’s lore and characters might seem too vapid to be the basis for a 100-part anime series, but Souji Yokoyama and Studio Sign have managed to do just that. Kirby: I’m Right Back At Ya!Early aughts. If Nintendo gets Kirby creator Masahiro Sakurai on as a producer, we could be treated to a Kirby cinematic tour de force that would… well, shave additional years off of the life of Mr. Sakurai, sadly. Sakurai is in need of a new passion after wrapping up his Super Smash Bros. work.

What is our choice of Kirby? Parks and RecreationChris Pratt is the star. This casting pitch does not hinge on people thinking he’s a snob! Chris Pratt, to me personally, is fine. He’s perfectly fine!)

4. Splatoon

Image: Nintendo

The success of Sony’s Spider-Verse movies and Paramount’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant MayhemHollywood may learn to make animated films that have distinct, kinetic styles. Nintendo’s stylish Splatoon series is the perfect fit for a stylistic diversion from Illumination’s typical house style. It even has a built-in cast of memorable stars: Squid Sisters Callie and Marie; Off the Hook’s Pearl and Marina; and Deep Cut’s Shiver, Frye, and Big Man (maybe played by Chris Pratt?).

Unfortunately, there’s a potential roadblock to Splatoon joining the Nintendo Cinematic Universe: the box-office bomb known as Ruby Gillman and the Teenage KrakenThis has made Hollywood turn away from squid children for quite some time.

5. Animal Crossing

Image: Nintendo

There is only one video game that outsold the others. Animal Crossing New HorizonsNintendo Switch Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Animal Crossing is a popular game that has become a household brand thanks to the pandemic. It introduced tens and millions of people to adorable animal villages, as well as the joy of paying off a mortgage.

Animal Crossing has always reminded me of Studio Ghibli, what with the bucolic settings and talking to animals. An animated movie about a down-on-his-luck divorcé (voiced by a Chris Pratt type) moving to a new home — let’s say, on a plot of land willed to him by a wealthy, eccentric uncle — being built in a magical land where cats, dogs, rabbits, and, for some reason, a bizarre sheep who wears clown makeup reside sounds like a fun blank slate for Illumination.

6. The Legend of Zelda

Image: Nintendo EPD/Nintendo

Following the success of The Legend of Zelda Breath of the WildThe following are some examples of how to get started: Tears of Kingdom, the bestselling games in Nintendo’s fantasy adventure franchise, a Legend of Zelda animated movie seems more likely than ever — certainly more likely than that rumored live-action Zelda series for Netflix ever did. The No. Link is the main thing that prevents Legend of Zelda from being a Super Mario Movie sequel. He’s a far less charismatic blank slate, and Nintendo already has a profitable princess-saving franchise on its hands. Just imagine Chris Pratt yelling “Hyup! Hah! Hyah! Hyup! Haaaaahhh!” for two hours.

We can never go back to This is what you should do: Link.

7. Metroid

Image: Nintendo

One of Nintendo’s all-time greatest game franchises has never been its most popular. Samus Aran’s chance to shine will be delayed until the game franchises above are adapted and developed for spinoffs, such as stand-alone Donkey Kong and Luigi movies, Yoshi films, Wario and Waluigi. I’m sorry, but it’s true: There will never be a live-action Ridley. Kids, just go and watch Alien!

8. Star Fox

Image: Nintendo

Despite the theatrical draw of talking animals — believe me, I would love to see Slippy on the big screen — 2016’s Star Fox Zero kinda feels like Fox McCloud’s last hurrah. As Nintendo franchises go, Star Fox simply doesn’t have the popularity for a big-budget movie adaptation. What about a TV puppet show that will be available on the Nintendo Plus service at some future date? That’s a much better fit.

9. Fire Emblem

Image: Intelligent Systems/Nintendo

Intelligent Systems’ Fire Emblem franchise has more than 30 years of story to draw from for a potential fantasy action-drama aimed at tweens or teens. In the 21st century, Fire Emblem products must have one key ingredient: horniness. Nintendo never would (except for every Fire Emblem video game).

10. F-Zero is tied with Kid Icarus and Earthbound.!, Chibi-Robo, Advance Wars, Arms, Rusty’s Real Deal Baseball, Ice Climbers, Devil World, Golden Sun, Starfy

Any of these beloved Nintendo properties feel as likely as Marvel’s The Eternals 2,The next 50 years. Don’t worry: Chris Pratt will find plenty of work without them.