Chris Pratt Addresses The Super Mario Bros. Movie Backlash & Tries to Ease Concerns

Chris Pratt is well aware of the backlash against his Mario voice in The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

He has explained why it wouldn’t work for a full feature-length film and now he is directly addressing the criticism.

The actor told Extra that those who are hesitant about his accent in the film to simply “come watch the movie” to ease their concerns.

“Go watch the movie and then we can talk,” said Pratt. “I really think that once you see the movie, and you know what, in all honesty, I think you probably need to watch it twice.”

He also noted that this more defensive reaction makes sense because of how pivotal Mario is to many people.

“In all honesty, the answer, though, is that this a passionate fan base. And it makes sense; I am part of it. This is the soundtrack to your youth. You don’t want someone to come along and cynically destroy it as some sort of cash grab with the movie. I fully understand that. You do not want that to happen. And there are so many hearts and souls and minds dedicated to make sure that didn’t happen.”

Pratt then explained that the film is respectful and, to him, could signal more nostalgic, well-made animated films.

“And you [Extra’s Jenn Lahmers] saw the movie, it really honors the world of Mario and is very promising as to what we can expect for the next 10 years, like an entire universe of these types of movies,” said Pratt. “They’re super nostalgic and really fun, and it’s Illumination, so they know what they’re doing. And it’s great, especially for me now that I have kids, I have to see every animated movie whether it’s good or not, so I am really grateful when a great animated movie comes out. And that’s what this is, thankfully, and hopefully there will be more.”

The voices have been a hot topic in regards to this film, as Seth Rogen also recently talked about his Donkey Kong voice. The This Is the End star explained that he only was going to do his normal voice because that’s the only voice he does, which is why the gorilla unmistakably sounds like Rogen.