Trivia
The set for Dinohattan was built in an abandoned cement factory in the woods outside of Wilmington, North Carolina. Set designs were adapted to the existing structure of the building.
Share this
None of the enemies in the film ever refer to Mario and Luigi by their first names. They only refer to them as "Plumbers, Mammals, and Monkeys." The only exception is the desk sergeant, who refers to them as "Marios" and "Mario Brothers."
Share this
Bob Hoskins didn't know that the film he was making was based on a game, until his son asked him what he was working on. When Hoskins mentioned the film's title, his son immediately recognized it and showed Hoskins the game on his own Nintendo.
Share this
The "Devolution" guns seen at the end of the film are simply repainted versions of the Super Nintendo light gun accessory, the "Super Scope".
Share this
During a chase scene, Bob Hoskins broke his finger when the van's door slammed on his hand. For the rest of the film, Hoskins is wearing a cast that was painted pink to look like a hand.
Share this
Various items from the video games appear, in at least name, throughout the film. These include Bob-ombs (a deceptively tiny wind-up bomb in the film), Thwomps (Thwomp Stompers are oversize footwear), Koopahari Desert (most of the world is this desert), Yoshi (a baby T. rex), Goombas (transformed citizens), Big Bertha (the woman who steals the pendant and that Mario dance with later on), and Bullet Bills (a cartridge with a face used to power the Thwomp Stomper boots)
Share this
An article in "Spy" magazine claimed that the script was being rewritten so many times during production that the actors stopped paying attention to these daily rewrites.
Share this
When Daisy is using the panel in the room with her father as a fungus, the noise that boots it up is a sound effect known as the "1-up" noise.
Share this
Bob Hoskins was quite unhappy with this film and his experience working on it. In an August 2007 interview, he proclaimed Super Mario Bros. as the worst thing he ever did.
Share this
According to John Leguizamo in his autobiography, Rocky Morton once poured hot coffee on an extra's head because he didn't like the extra's costume.
Share this
In his 2007 autobiography John Leguizamo states he and Bob Hoskins hated working on the film and would frequently get drunk to make it through the experience. Both men apparently knew the movie would turn out bad, so they simply tried to make the best of it. He also stated he felt one of the biggest reasons the movie turned out the way it did was because the directors wanted a more "adult" movie while the studio, considering the source material, was looking for a children's film.
Share this
John Leguizamo broke one of Bob Hoskins's fingers during a stunt involving the Mario van. According to Leguizamo, when it happened, Bob started cussing profusely and incoherently.
Share this
Dustin Hoffman expressed interest in the role of Mario because his children were fans of the game.
Share this
More than 1 1/2 square miles of plywood, 150 tons of steel, and 62 miles of lumber was used to create the Dinohatten set.
Share this
The Yoshi puppet was capable of making 64 separate movements due to 200 feet of cable crammed inside its 3 foot tall structure. In all, no less than 9 puppeteers were used to operate the Yoshi puppet.
Share this
Before Bob Hoskins was officially cast, Danny DeVito and Bruno Kirby were both attached to play the role of Mario at different times.
Share this
Peter Levy was the original director of photography, but was fired after the directors and producer were unhappy with his work. Dean Semler was called in to replace him, and within less than a week of joining, Semler contacted Levy and said that he regretted signing onto the movie.
Share this
Considered by many video game enthusiasts to be among, if not the worst, movie adaptation of a game ever made.
Share this
Although Bob Hoskins said that this is the worst film he ever made, his son Jack Hoskins is a fan of this film, praising his dad's performance. He said that he was too young to understand the bad reviews and now that he's old enough, he doesn't care. He quoted on the film's fan website "SMBArchive.com": "If there's anyone reading this, please understand that it's no one's intention to ruin the classics. One last thing; if you remember your past enjoyments, then it would definitely keep your childhood memories alive and safely locked in your head forever."
Share this
