The Super Mario Bros. Movie has achieved a unique Rotten Tomatoes record thanks to its massive success at the box office. The film adaptation of the Mario franchise has become the highest-grossing film of 2023 and the highest-grossing video game movie of all time, raking in $1.239 billion at the box office worldwide. While The Super Mario Bros. Movie has received mixed reviews from critics, audiences seem to be enjoying the plumber's adventure in the Mushroom Kingdom.

Now, Comicbook reports The Super Mario Bros. Movie has broken a Rotten Tomatoes record, becoming the highest-grossing film with a "rotten" score on the site at the domestic box office. Domestically, The Super Mario Bros. Movie has made $549.29 million. The previous record-holder for this unique achievement was Disney's live-action remake of The Lion King, which made $543.63 million domestically.

Why The Mario Movie Has Maintained Popularity

Mario from The Super Mario Bros. Movie punching an item box with Mario coins all around him

The box office achievements of The Super Mario Bros. Movie underscores how much the film has resonated with audiences looking for a fun time at the theater. Given the popularity of the decades-old video game mascot, it's no surprise his first animated feature film has garnered so much popularity. Earlier, The Super Mario Bros. Movie leaked on Twitter, an illegal post that still highlights the success of the movie.

Despite getting criticisms for having a simplistic plot and shallow characters, The Super Mario Bros. Movie has also received praise for its faithfulness to the Mario franchise. This includes a plethora of references in the movie, with everything from Mario Kart to Super Mario Galaxy having some aspect of it in the film. Nintendo's direct involvement and the family-friendly nature of the film set The Super Mario Bros. Movie on a path to success even before it was released.

The success of The Super Mario Bros. Movie has also opened the door for other Nintendo film adaptations in the future. According to Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto and Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri, Nintendo and Illumination have a bright future that could see more Nintendo properties adapted by the animation studio. What those projects could be is unknown, but the success of The Super Mario Bros. Movie means Mario could return to the big screen in the future.

Source: Comicbook