Oh look, Nintendo decided to drop a new character poster right before the release of *The Super Mario Galaxy Movie*, and surprise—it’s not another Toad or a Goomba. Nope, it’s Fox McCloud, the hotshot space pilot from Star Fox, officially making his cinematic debut alongside his iconic Arwing. You know, because nothing screams “Mario” like a furry, mercenary pilot from a completely unrelated franchise.
With literally less than a week to go until The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is in theatres, Nintendo has decided to drop a bombshell on fans regarding who will make an appearance in the film, adding to the still churning rumour mill that claims Nintendo wants to make a Super Smash-focused film.
Sure, the movie is set in space, so I guess Fox is just *hanging out* there, waiting to shoot some lasers and probably complain about his dead dad again. It’s not like he has any actual connection to the Mushroom Kingdom, but hey, who needs lore consistency when you can just throw in a popular character and watch the internet lose its mind?
Seeing as how the sequel to the Mario Bros. film will at least partially take place in space, Fox McCloud, the hero of the Starfox game franchise, is making his film debut. In a new poster revealed by Nintendo, Fox can be seen in the same animation style used by Illumination for the rest of the cast of characters, alongside his iconic Arwing. That poster (and social media post) can be seen below.
Now, let’s address the elephant—or should I say, the anthropomorphic fox—in the room. Fox McCloud doesn’t appear in any Mushroom Kingdom-based canon. He’s never fought Bowser, he’s never raced in Mario Kart, and he sure as heck doesn’t know Princess Peach. But Nintendo, in its infinite wisdom, has decided to toss him into the mix anyway, because why not? It’s not like fans have been begging for a coherent storyline or anything.
Like the previously revealed to be in The Super Mario Galaxy Movie Pikmin, Fox McCloud notably doesn’t appear in any of the Mushroom Kingdom-based canon, which is why his inclusion in the film will continue to fuel the ongoing rumour mill on forums that Nintendo will eventually make a Super Smash Bros. film. Both Fox McCloud from the Star Fox series and Olimar/Alph from Pikmin appear in Super Smash Bros., and they both don’t have any run-ins with residents of the Mushroom Kingdom outside of Smash Bros. Another Smash character, R.O.B., has also been confirmed for the film with no ties to the Kingdom either.
And let’s not forget the other random additions to the cast, like the Pikmin, who are also making an appearance despite having absolutely no reason to be there. Oh, and R.O.B., the robot that’s about as relevant to Mario’s world as a toaster is to a fish tank. It’s almost as if Nintendo is building up to a Super Smash Bros. movie, where all these characters can finally beat each other up for no reason. Groundbreaking.
On Reddit, new threads have spawned in the wake of the Nintendo poster reveal, and fans have been convinced of the next film involving more Nintendo characters embroiled in battle. One fan speculates Master Hand (the main antagonist from Super Smash Bros.) will appear after the end credits. Aside from speculation, so far, The Super Mario Movie includes newcomers Brie Larson as Rosalina, Donald Glover as Yoshi and Benny Safdie as Bowser Jr., alongside returning cast members: Chris Pratt as Mario, Anya Taylor-Joy as Princess Peach, Charlie Day as Luigi, Jack Black as Bowser, Keegan-Michael Key as Toad, and Kevin Michael Richardson as Kamek.
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie launches in theatres on April 1.
So, get ready for a movie that’s basically a glorified Nintendo crossover event, where logic and canon go out the window, and Fox McCloud is just along for the ride. Because if there’s one thing we’ve learned from all this, it’s that Nintendo loves to keep us guessing—and laughing.
Pixel P. Snarkbyte, widely regarded as the “Shakespeare of Sh*tposts,” is a video game expert with a unique knack for turning pixels into punchlines.
Born in the small town of Respawn, Pennsylvania, Pixel grew up mashing buttons on an ancient NES controller, firmly believing that “blowing into the cartridge” was a sacred ritual passed down through generations.
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