The Super Mario Bros. Movie has been breaking a lot of box office records ever since its release in theaters last month and it is now expected to be one of the highest-grossing animated films of all time as a result.
The Nintendo/Illumination's impressive box office run has been seen by analysts as a sign of what's about to come in the next several months and an indication that the pre-pandemic box office performance might finally return this year, especially with numerous tentpoles that are coming this summer.
To perhaps the surprise of many, the film's box office performance has also been noticed by the rival studio Disney as its CEO Bob Iger recently praised the movie's success during the company's quarterly earnings call last week according to a report from Video Games Chronicle.
Iger opened his remarks by giving a special shoutout to The Super Mario Bros. Movie and he shared his belief that its success is an optimistic sign about the future of the theatrical business.
"Good afternoon everyone. Allow me to digress for a moment to congratulate Universal for the tremendous success of Super Mario Bros.," the Disney CEO said.
"It certainly proves people love to be entertained in theaters around the world, and it gives us reason to be optimistic about the movie business."
So far, the film has grossed more than $1.21 billion at the box office, making it the fourth highest-grossing animated movie of all time. It is also now the highest-grossing film produced by Illumination.
Iger's remarks are certainly a surprising and yet welcome one since they just show that he recognizes the importance of the success of the other studios to the entire business and he hopes that his company's movies will follow suit in the coming months.
Fortunately, Disney has a great start in the summer season as the MCU film Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 already grossed more than $500 million worldwide and it is expected to do well in the coming weeks.
The studio also has upcoming releases this season such as The Little Mermaid, which is expected to be a huge hit on Memorial Day weekend, the Disney-Pixar film Elemental, and the horror comedy The Haunted Mansion.
Also Read: The Super Mario Bros. Movie Officially Joins the Billion Dollar Club
The Super Mario Bros. Movie is still showing in theaters worldwide. You can check more details about it here.