Summary
- Ne Zha 2 surpasses The Super Mario Bros. Movie in global box office earnings.
- Sequels like Inside Out 2 have also jumped past The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
The unexpected smash-hit film Ne Zha 2 has surpassed The Super Mario Bros. Movie in global box office earnings, knocking the beloved Nintendo plumbers out of fourth place on the list of the highest-grossing animated movies of all time. The Super Mario Bros. Movie was a mega hit among audiences upon its initial release back in 2023, but an unlikely Chinese release has pushed the Mario brothers further down the charts.
First announced in 2018, The Super Mario Bros. Movie stayed quietly under the radar until the cast was revealed during a 2021 Nintendo Direct. In spite of early mixed reactions to some castings, audiences turned out in full force for the release of The Super Mario Bros. Movie, quickly pushing it past the billion-dollar mark at the box office. Perhaps just as surprisingly, a brand-new animated feature from China has seen its own monumental returns, even surpassing the iconic Super Mario Bros. film.
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According to IMDb, the 2025 Chinese animated fantasy adventure film Ne Zha 2 has already grossed over $1.5 billion, leapfrogging it past both The Super Mario Bros. Movie and Frozen 2 to become the third highest-grossing animated movie of all time. Ne Zha 2 is a direct sequel to the 2019 release Ne Zha and loosely combines the stories of a 16th-century Chinese novel, Investiture of the Gods, and the Chinese mythological figure Nezha the Crown Prince. As of February 14, 2025, Ne Zha 2 has been released outside of China, giving the film the opportunity to climb even higher in the box office ranks. While The Super Mario Bros. Movie has now been officially knocked down in the rankings, it will be interesting to see if the next Super Mario Bros. film will see a similar “sequel success” to Ne Zha 2.
Top 10 Highest-Grossing Animated Movies of All Time
- Inside Out 2
- The Lion King (2019)
- Ne Zha 2
- Frozen 2
- The Super Mario Bros. Movie
- Frozen
- Incredibles 2
- Minions
- Toy Story 4
- Toy Story 3
Ne Zha 2 is not the only sequel to have surpassed The Super Mario Bros. Movie in global box office rankings. The 2024 release Inside Out 2 not only jumped past The Super Mario Bros. Movie but skyrocketed to the number one spot as the highest-grossing animated film of all time. Other sequels to see greater returns than their predecessors include Disney’s Moana 2, as well as Pixar’s Toy Story 3, Toy Story 4, and Incredibles 2. With this success of sequels continuing for Ne Zha 2, this pattern could possibly give fans an idea of what to expect from a Mario Movie sequel.
Both animated movies and video game screen adaptations have seen a rise in popularity in recent years, with The Super Mario Bros. Movie being among the standout offerings. The legendary Nintendo franchise has plenty of characters, settings, and stories to explore, so the potential to see even greater returns at the box office is certainly there. Interested fans will want to stay tuned for any news on when they can expect to see a sequel to The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie
6/10
- Release Date
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April 5, 2023
- Runtime
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92 Minutes
- Director
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Aaron Horvath, Michael Jelenic
- Writers
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Matthew Fogel
- Sequel(s)
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The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2
Cast
