During the Q&A that followed, director Rich Moore was asked about the many classic game cameos seen in the first trailer and whether there were any others he wanted to include in the movie, but couldn't because of rights issues.
"Why would I talk about that certain mustachioed plumber guy?" he responded. "And his brother, who wanted more money?"That translates to no screen time for Mario and Luigi.
Unless it was just for humor, that wording probably suggests Nintendo wanted a substantial fee to allow its Super Mario Bros. characters to appear.
Not cool. On both sides. Nintendo should have just let it go (free publicity for the franchise) but Disney could also have paid up (bragging rights are worth whatever Nintendo was asking).
Trouble with rights clearances is, of course, not new.
Mattel, you might recall, didn't allow Barbie to appear in Toy Story, before having a change of heart for Pixar's second and third installments. More recently, Sesame Workshop refused permission for an Elmo cameo in Disney's The Muppets.
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I feel like there's still a chance they'll appear. After all, Bowser is in it, who is the main villain from the Mario series. There could also be a secrecy thing where they can't talk about it and can't show it in the trailers. But, I can also see Nintendo not letting their little red angel go into the world of movies again after his 1993 disaster. Either way, Wreck-It Ralph will still be a great flick!
But Bowser is in the preview/movie: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wreck-It_Ralph
I guess there is more to the story that I will hopefully not find out until after I see the movie
Can I guess humour? I dunno, seems weird allowing rights to some Nintendo properties but going to these guys and thinking "naw, thanks" so I dunno if they'd play an all or nothing sort of game with licensing. Find out when it gets released, still an interesting sidestory.
That last sentence makes me sad. I miss Jim Henson...
That stinks. But what about Bowser? He's from the same franchise, and they managed to get him in there.
I don't get it. Bowser is in the trailer, but Nintendo wanted more money for Mario and Luigi?
Well, at least Mario's nemesis, Bowser, made it into the film. Too bad about the plumbers; I was hoping they'd make an appearance.
Wow, it seems like people don't read previous comments before posting.
I use to work for EMI and my job had to deal with licenses and permissions for IP and man was it a pain in the ass. I'm guessing that they definitely wanted Mario and Luigi in the movie and that there's probably a huge price to allow that to happen. Mario is actually more recognizable than Mickey Mouse (shocker but it's true) and let's say Nintendo did allow it for a low licensing fee or for free then the value of that IP would go down. It's kind of like if someone uses your trademark without your permission but doesn't use it in a malicious way, if you don't protect your trademark them then this may allow others to use the trademark without permission as well so you have to protect it all the time. I also read that the Wreck-it Ralph video game will only be on Nintendo platforms so I'm also guessing that in order to use Bowser Disney had to agree to not make a version of the game on the competitor's platforms because movie-based games are usually on every platform your could imagine.
To anonymous: I saw a test screening of Wreck-It Ralph and I can assure you that Mario and Luigi aren't in there. And with 3 months left until the film is release, I highly doubt they have time for a last minute addition like that (especially since the 10-minute preview they showed at Comic Con still contained unfinished footage).
But it still would have been pretty cool to see them in there!
Jared: Comments are moderated to prevent spam, so readers sometimes make similar statements concurrently before I have a chance to publish them.
Well, isn't Ralph essentially Donkey Kong? And isn't that blue-hatted plumber essentially Mario back in the days when he was called Jumpman the carpenter?
Think about it. Disney's a Cash Cow. Mario's a Cash Cow. Combining them would create a MEGA CASH COW THAT MAKES BILLIONS AND BILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN DAYS! Of COURSE Disney wanted Mario Characters In This Movie. Oh Well. Hopefully Sonic Will Be In The Movie.
What happened in 1993?
Anonymous #5: "Super Mario Bros: The Movie". Nuff' Said.
For All Those Curious About Why Mario and Luigi aren't in this Movie But Bowser Is: Bowser Is Popular, But He Sucks At Doing Evil Stuff. Mario and Luigi are Influences, Hero's, Superstar's but most Importantly: They Are The World's Most Popular Video Game Characters. Bowser Came Cheap But Mario and Luigi's Price Requires More Coins Than Disney Offered. Seriously, Mario's A Coin Addict As Much As Wario Is. Don't Believe Me? Watch The Trailer For New Super Mario Bros. 2, and Then We'll Talk. Humor or Not, Mario's Film Right's Should Cost A Pretty Penny.
I'd assume this is a joke, and if Mario and Luigi aren't included it's only because there's not a good part to put them into the plot. Nintendo wouldn't deny Disney use of their characters. Bowser is already in it.
I'm very inclined to believe that last statement, what role is mario going to play, just a walk on role in the terminal station, I know this movie is about Arcade Icon, but I don't remember a Sonic game in the arcades, and i played arcade games since Pong.(yeah, i'm that old school, played loads of Space Invaders, Pac-man and Donkey Kong as well.)
Triton, while not exactly classic status, Sonic arcade cabinets do exist. I that is enough in their eyes.
Well it obviously makes sense that Mario and Luigi "couldn't" be included in the film yet you could pay to get Bowser in this. I guess after getting Kano, Smoke, Sonic and friends, Q*bert,Ken, Ryu, and every other video game character under the sun then pixar might have gone way over budget trying to afford everyone's favorite mustachioed plumber. Either way I can't wait til this movie come out in theaters, it looks like it'll be AMAZING plus Jane Lynch is in it so you know it must be good.
I find it really stupid that mario and luigi the twobiggest vdeo game characters in videogame history will notbe in a movie for videogame characters. Yet there is still a chance for all those who think they will appear as bowser does show up in the movie, alo I didnt see sonic in the trailer so even though he is stated to be in the movie the mario brothers could be in it but not shwon in the trailers
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