Films at their best: The Super Mario Galaxy Movie 2026

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is a follow-up to The Super Mario Bros. Movie. Its latest movie was released in UK cinemas on 1 April 2026. However, this movie features a special someone. Can you guess who it may be?

WARNING - potential spoilers 

Plot

The film begins with the introduction of Princess Rosalina, who was kidnapped by Bowser Jr., the son of Bowser, who was defeated by Mario and Luigi in the first movie after being shrunken by Princess Peach's powers.

Mario and Luigi are called to the Mushroom Kingdom, where they also bring Yoshi, a green, odd-looking dinosaur with a big nose. They cover the kingdom after Rosalina sends one of her Lumas to get help from Peach and Toad.

Bowser Jr. gets revenge in exchange for Mario and Luigi shrinking his father and lifts Princess Peach's castle out of the Mushroom Kingdom. But it is later dropped in the Honeyhive galaxy. Bowser provokes Mario into a fight, which evidently unshrinks him and returns him to his normal size.

Peach meets Wart, a casino owner, and forces him to tell her where Rosalina is, but he alerts Bowser after she finds out she is in the Space Junk Galaxy. The gang, Mario, Luigi, Toad, Yoshi and Peach reunite and travel to the Space Junk Galaxy in Fox McCloud's aircraft. However, it later crashes, and Bowser uses a shrinking machine to shrink Mario and Luigi into babies. Yoshi rescues the brothers and restores them to their normal size.

Fast forward to the Comet Observatory, and Peach discovers her relationship with Rosalina and the powers she holds. Peach, Mario, Luigi and Toad are sent to the new Planet Bowser, where they begin a battle with him on a bridge located on top of a river made of lava. He later falls into the river, but returns in skeleton form. On the other side of the kingdom, Peach tries to rescue Rosalina in a hopeful plan to save her and rebuild her castle.

(L-R) Luigi, Yoshi, Mario, Toad - Credit: Courtesy of Nintendo Co., Ltd, Illumination Entertainment and Universal Studios/Pictures

Analysis

I am sure fans have been waiting for the long-awaited arrival of Yoshi after the first movie because I can tell you I was itching to see his dramatic reveal in the second instalment. The typical sound he makes and his friendly personality really tied his whole character together. 

The film was also very fast-paced, as it jumped from scene to scene. It did draw on the character development of Rosalina, Peach and the father-son bonding relationship between Bowser and Bowser Jr., but there was little development of the other characters.

The graphics throughout the whole movie were simply beautiful. The opacity of colour and vibrance in each character and background detail brought the film to life. 

It's nostalgia, as a Mario Kart fan, that brought me back to my childhood years. A joyful and exciting watch, particularly for younger audiences and adults, of course!