In the grand tradition of Hollywood casting announcements designed to break the internet, Nintendo has revealed that Donald Glover will voice Yoshi in the upcoming Super Mario Galaxy Movie. Yes, that Donald Glover. Yes, the adorable green dinosaur.
After the mild chaos of casting Chris Pratt as Mario—a decision that sparked approximately one million think pieces—Nintendo and Illumination have apparently decided that A-list celebrity voices are the path forward. And honestly? It's working.
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie continues to stack its roster with genuinely interesting choices. Alongside Glover's Yoshi, we're getting Wart (the villain from Super Mario Bros. 2, deep cut!) and Honey Queen from Super Mario Galaxy. No word yet on who's voicing them, but if the pattern holds, expect someone wildly overqualified.
Glover is an inspired pick for Yoshi, actually. The character needs to be charming, slightly goofy, and effortlessly likable—which describes Glover's entire career. Whether he's Troy Barnes on Community, Lando Calrissian in Solo, or Childish Gambino on stage, the man radiates charisma. Even if Yoshi just says "Yoshi!" for two hours, Glover will make it work.
This also represents Nintendo's continued commitment to treating their film adaptations as prestige projects rather than cash-grab kids' movies. The first made nearly , proving audiences will show up for video game adaptations—if you don't treat them like lesser entertainment.
