Every ‘Super Mario Bros. Movie’ Easter Egg, From ‘Balloon Fight’ to ‘Wrecking Crew’
The Super Mario Bros. Movie is designed for people who have an affection for the franchise: the millions of Nintendo fans who have spent innumerable hours in the world of the Mushroom Kingdom. Those are the same people who will eagerly seek out references to Nintendo history throughout the new film. Good news: This movie is chock full of Easter eggs, both blink-and-you’ll-miss-it nods to the Mario’s (and company’s) origins and fun winks to some ’80s Nintendo classics.
For a full rundown of all the Nintendo goodness you’ll want to keep an eye out for when you go see Super Mario Bros. Movie for the first, second, or fifth time (you know who you are), follow along with our complete guide. And if there’s one we somehow missed, please let us know! But be nice about it.
Cape Mario: At the end of the commercial for Super Mario Bros. Plumbing, Mario dons the famous yellow cape he first wears in Super Mario World, which allows him to fly.
Punch-Out Pizzeria: The pizza place where Mario and Luigi hang out and see their commercial is named after the beloved Nintendo Entertainment System game. It is, appropriately, full of other references to the games, including framed photos of many of the challengers you fight in it. I spotted Glass Joe, Bear Hugger, and Mike Tyson—or perhaps it was Mr. Dream.
‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie’ Perfectly Captures the Games’ Spirit
Jumpman: In the corner of the pizzeria is an arcade cabinet for the fictional, Donkey Kong-style game Jumpman. The English version of the original Donkey Kong arcade game called Mario—then anonymous—was called “Jumpman,” which never became an official moniker. But the nickname still persists with fans. Also, the man playing Jumpman? He’s very obviously voiced by Mario and Luigi’s in-game voice actor, Charles Martinet.
Foreman Spike: Mario and Luigi’s former boss, who mocks their commercial at the pizza place, is the main villain of the NES game Wrecking Crew. He even wears a hat that says “Wrecking Crew,” to put a really fine point on it. It’s a good choice of bully, as Wrecking Crew pits Mario and Luigi directly against Spike.
The GameCube start-up music: When Luigi gets a phone call from the brothers’ first customers, his ringtone is a truncated version of the familiar jingle that plays whenever you boot up a GameCube game. That’s our first reference from the 21st century!
Sunshine Travel Agency: The storefront right next to Punch-Out Pizzeria is named after Super Mario Sunshine, Mario’s big GameCube adventure. The sign is written in the same tropical-looking font as the game’s title.
The Fire Game and Watch game: A truck that the brothers pass by has a design inspired by one of the more famous titles for the Game and Watch handheld, Fire. A silhouetted character holds a trampoline, which, in the game, is meant to help soften the landing for people jumping from a burning building.
Construction site: There’s a fun sequence where Mario and Luigi, while en route to their first job, run and jump through a construction site that looks like a Mario game level. And it is one! It’s a recreation of World 1-1 from the original Super Mario Bros. video game.
Duck Hunt dog: The movie has multiple references to Duck Hunt, one of the most iconic NES games. An early one is in the expansive home of the Bros.’ clients. We see some framed abstract art on the walls, including a painting of that jerk dog that laughs at you every time you fail to shoot a duck.
Pikmin: The clients also have a glass vase shaped like a Pikmin, the little plant creatures from the eponymous alien-planet strategy game.
The voice of Mario’s dad: We meet Mario and Luigi’s parents after their first big job goes awry. The boys return home, defeated. Turns out that their dad, who’s especially cruel toward his son, is voiced by Charles Martinet. Glad he got a full-fledged role, even if it’s a minor one!
Kid Icarus: Mario plays Kid Icarus, the old NES side scroller starring a kid with wings, in his room, where he retreats to when his family keeps mocking his new business at dinner.
The Arwing: Mario has a model of Star Fox hero Fox McCloud’s spaceship above his TV.
Pauline: Mario and Luigi watch a news broadcast about a major plumbing issue in Brooklyn, which features a quick interview with the mayor of the city. She’s Pauline, the original damsel in distress from Donkey Kong. Most recently, she became mayor of New Donk City in Super Mario Odyssey, making this a shout-out to that game.
Duck Hunt duck: The other big Duck Hunt Easter egg is a French restaurant called Chasse Au Canard. Translation: “Duck Hunt.” The restaurant’s awning features the duck from Duck Hunt.
“Level” 1-2: This Easter egg is sort of annoying, because the levels in Mario are actually referred to as worlds. When Mario and Luigi descend into the sewer to fix the city’s pipes, the sign next to the ladder they climb down says “Level 1-2,” a clear reference to Super Mario Bros. World 1-2, the game’s first underground level.
Crazy Cap: Once Mario’s in Mushroom Kingdom, he and Toad walk by a bunch of storefronts on the way to the castle. One of them is Crazy Cap, the costume shop from Super Mario Odyssey.
Blowing into cartridges: It’s hard to miss this one, but Mario and Toad also pass an antiques stand selling NES carts. The shopkeeper tells a customer that if the cart isn’t working at first, try blowing on it—a mythologized trick for reviving old Nintendo games that don’t want to play nice.
Dixie Kong and Kiddy Kong: Among the attendees at Donkey Kong and Mario’s big battle in the Kong Kingdom are Dixie Kong and her little brother, Kiddy. They co-starred in Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong’s Double Trouble!, and it’s very rude that they don’t get the on-screen shout-out that Dixie’s bestie, Diddy Kong, gets.
“Game Start” music from Donkey Kong: When Donkey Kong finally loses his fight with Mario, we hear a quick musical flourish right before he falls down. That’s the intro music to the arcade Donkey Kong—kind of ironic, since this is the end of the battle.
Kart customization options: When Peach, Toad, and Mario build their go-karts to take onto Rainbow Road, the dials they spin to make their choices mirror the ones in Mario Kart 8, right down to the specific kart, wheel, and glider options. Peach and Mario end up going with their characters’ default bike and kart, respectively, from the game.
Bowser and Peach’s wedding outfits: At their short-lived wedding, Bowser and Peach wear the exact same white suit and dress from their similarly canceled wedding in Super Mario Odyssey.
Balloon Fighter: When Mario re-enters his homeworld, he lands right near a sign for a car wash. The logo is of the main character from the NES game Balloon Fight, who’s known as… Balloon Fighter.
Diskun Hardware Store: This is probably the most obscure reference in the movie, and it gets a surprising amount of screentime. A lot of Mario’s final fight with Bowser takes place on the street adjacent to this hardware store, whose logo and (slightly tweaked) name comes from this little-known character. Diskun was the mascot for the Japan-only Famicom Disk System. This console peripheral, whose games came on floppy disks that looked like Diskun itself, never made it abroad.
Playing card company billboard: There’s a big poster for a playing card company that appears in the background of this last fight scene too. While it looks like it’s for regular Western playing cards, the small print specifically mentions “hanafuda”—the Japanese cards that Nintendo has produced for decades, long before it started making video games.
The Real-Life Buddies Behind ‘Tetris’: From Breaking Laws in the USSR to Happy Hour at SXSW
Blizzard Pop mascot: The mascot for the frozen treats store also on this embattled street is the Polar Bear from Ice Climbers. This sunglasses-and-shorts-wearing guy is one of the main enemies you face in the NES game.
Mario’s posters: One of the posters behind Mario’s bed at the very end of the movie features the Polar Bear as well. Another is of the Blue Falcon, Captain Falcon’s race car from the F-Zero games. And earlier in the movie, we see Mario has posters for the NES games Baseball and Kung-Fu.
Ludwig Von Koopa: Bowser’s baby grand piano is made by one of his Koopalings: the Beethoven-inspired Ludwig. (Thanks for spotting, Gamepopper!)
Keep obsessing! Sign up for the Daily Beast’s Obsessed newsletter and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.
Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.
Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now.
