When it comes to memorable characters, it's a must to mention Mario from Super Mario Bros. Although he was already an icon from the days of the NES and SNES, he captivated thousands of players and became one of the most recognizable protagonists in entertainment thanks to the performance by Charles Martinet. So, it caught the attention when Nintendo announced that the veteran actor would step aside. Why wasn't his replacement revealed right away?
In June 2023, fans noticed that the voice of the mustached plumber sounded a bit strange in the first trailer of Super Mario Bros. Wonder, the new installment in the franchise. After months of theories and rumors, it was confirmed that Charles Martinet would no longer voice the character in this and other titles.
At that time, the company refrained from revealing the identity of the person who would bring the character to life in future projects and urged the community to wait for the release of the new title to find out the answer.
Shortly before the release, actor Kevin Zachary Afghani, who previously worked on Genshin Impact and Anime Penguin: Red Snow, confirmed through a social media post that he voiced Mario and Luigi in Super Mario Bros. Wonder. It's unknown whether he will participate in future games and also voice other characters like Wario and Waluigi.
Why did Nintendo take so long to reveal the new Mario actor?
With the aforementioned timeline, we can see that there was nearly a 5-month period of silence until it was finally revealed that Kevin Afghani is the person who lent his voice to the iconic Nintendo character in the new title of the series. So, it's inevitable to wonder why the revelation came only at the release of Super Mario Bros. Wonder.
In an interview with WIRED, the President of Nintendo of America spoke about Charles Martinet's replacement and revealed the reason for keeping the actor's identity a secret. Specifically, he stated that they wanted fans to focus on the game rather than the new voice.
"We want people to enjoy the gaming experience. If they enjoyed the voice behind the playable experience, that's what matters most to us; not necessarily highlighting [the new Mario actor]," the executive said in the interview.
Fortunately, the community's reactions were very positive. Players praised Kevin Afghani's work, and it seems that he will be the new voice for these iconic characters from now on. Only time will tell.
But tell us, did you like the work of the new plumber actor? Would you like to hear him in new video games? Let us know in the comments.
Super Mario Bros. Wonder is now available exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.
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