Charles Martinet "stepping back" from voicing Mario

[Nester the Lark]

End of an era.

There was speculation about this when the trailer for Super Mario Bros Wonder was released. I wonder who the new actor is. (I doubt it's Chris Pratt. I think Nintendo will keep the games and movies separate.)

I've been familiar with Martinet's voice for Mario since I first heard it in Super Mario 64 in 1996, although he's been voicing it for longer than that, starting with a "virtual Mario" at the Consumer Electronics Show in the early '90s. It'll be interesting to see what this new role of "Mario Ambassador" will encompass.

Here's his own brief comment on the matter:

[nocturnal YL]

He has been Mario's voice for more than 30 years. That's very impressive.

I wonder if this means future games will have his voices replaced entirely, or will it be a mix of his archived voice with newly recorded lines from other voice actors as needed. Given that Mario doesn't audibly speak in full sentences, I think they can go for a while without new voice lines.

[Nester the Lark]

It's been confirmed that Mario's voice in Super Mario Bros Wonder is a new actor, but it hasn't been revealed who it is yet.

Obviously, Martinet is still on good terms with Nintendo if he's continuing as "Mario Ambassador," but I do wonder why this change is happening now.

For some reason, I'm reminded of when Roger Craig Smith suddenly announced that he was no longer voicing Sonic the Hedgehog, and then about two months later, he announced that he was back voicing Sonic again.

[nocturnal YL]

I can't help but think this may have to do with Martinet's age. 67 isn't particularly old for voice acting, but Mario is a high-pitched character, so I guess voicing Mario would put quite some strain on one's vocal cords.

[Nester the Lark]

Kit & Krysta have posted a video discussing their own take on the situation.



In short, they think Nintendo is planning to take Mario, as a character, in a new direction, perhaps influenced by the Mario movie, and they want a new actor that will accommodate that vision. Having Martinet be a Mario Ambassador is sort of a consolation prize so that it doesn't come across like they're outright firing him.

Not sure if I believe all this (is Martinet really that limited as an actor?), but what do I know?

[nocturnal YL]

A while ago, Martinet mentioned that he'd want to keep voicing Mario for life. It's a bit depressing to see him leaving the role merely 2 years after showing such passion.

[Nester the Lark]

So, here's the video message from Shigeru Miyamoto and Charles Martinet.

It doesn't shed any new light on why they're changing voice actors, and the role of "Mario Ambassador" isn't really any different than what he already does.

So, yeah, still a curious situation.