'They messed up': John Leguizamo who previously played Luigi reveals why he won't be watching 'The Super Mario Bros Movie'
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: John Leguizamo has been outspoken about the absence of diversity in 'The Super Mario Bros Movie'. On the one hand, Mario and Luigi aren't exactly being "Whitewashed" despite being two well-known Italian characters. However, it is true to state that in terms of casting a Latino in a starring part, the new movie lags behind 1993's 'Super Mario Bros'.
'The Super Mario Bros Movie', which features Chris Pratt and Charlie Day in the leading roles of Mario and Luigi, might have gotten fans from all over the world excited but Leguizamo has stated that he "won't be watching" the film. On the day of its debut in theaters, the actor informed the press that the casting prevented him from seeing the new 'Mario' movie.
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Why is John Leguizamo coming down hard on the new 'Mario' movie?
While chatting with TMZ, Leguizamo said that he won't be watching the movie. He said, "No, I will not [be watching]. They could’ve included a Latin character,” Leguizamo said. “Like I was groundbreaking and then they stopped the groundbreaking. They messed up the inclusion. They dis-included. Just cast some Latin folk! We’re 20% of the population. The largest people of color group and we are underrepresented.”
While Princess Peach voice actress Anya Taylor-Joy has Argentine ancestry and lived in Argentina for some years as a youngster, Leguizamo appears to be focusing his anger on the lack of inclusion in the lead roles of Mario and Luigi.
What else did John Leguizamo say regarding the recently released Mario movie?
Leguizamo first voiced his disapproval of the new animated film on Twitter in October 2022, noting that a revival of the 'Mario' film series was a fine idea but it was “too bad they went all White! No Latinx in the leads! Groundbreaking color-blind casting in original! Plus I’m the only one who knows how to make this movie work script-wise!”
The actor had also previously spoken to IndieWire about his thoughts on Chris Patt taking the lead in the new film. “I’m OG. A lot of people love the original,” Leguizamo said when asked for his thoughts on the Chris Pratt-starring new 'Mario' movie. “I did Comic-Con in New York and in Baltimore, and everyone’s like, ‘No, no, we love the old one, the original.’ They’re not feeling the new one.’ I’m not bitter. It’s unfortunate.”
He added, “The directors Annabel Jankel and Rocky Morton fought really hard for me to be the lead because I was a Latin man, and they [the studio] didn’t want me to be the lead.” The actor added, “They fought really hard, and it was such a breakthrough. For them to go backwards and not cast another [actor of color] kind of sucks.”
'The Super Mario Bros Movie' is now playing in theaters nationwide.