Illumination’s upcoming Super Mario Bros. movie is bringing back one of the Mushroom Kingdom’s most obscure characters: Foreman Spike from 1995’s NES and arcade game Wrecking Crew.
First reported by VGC, comedian Sebastian Maniscalco appeared on fellow comedian Bert Kreischer’s podcast (yes, of the shirtless stand-up fame) and claimed he was voicing Mario's little-known boss in Illumination’s CG film.
“I’m in the movie Super Mario Bros., an animated movie,” Maniscalco said. “I’m playing Spike, their boss.”
Spike first appeared as the foreman of Mario in 1985’s Wrecking Crew, serving as an antagonist of sorts to the lowly plumber, as pointed out by Twitter user @eponge2L.
Foreman Spike from Wrecking Crew will be in the Super Mario Bros. Movie from Illumination!
(Source; https://t.co/sudEYW89DZ, 1:35:13 mark)#SuperMario pic.twitter.com/XGDDBc3UbY
— Bob L'éponge (@Eponge2L) August 7, 2021
Spike also appeared in the 1998 Japan-only sequel Wrecking Crew ‘98 for the Super Famicom.
Maniscalco has worked as a stand-up comedian since 1998, releasing five comedy specials throughout the years. He’s more recently transitioned to sizeable acting roles, including Italian mobster “Crazy” Joe Gallo in Martin Scorcese’s The Irishman and a supporting role in Green Book.
If Maniscalco’s comment is true, it’s the first bit of casting info for Illumination’s take on the Mushroom Kingdom. Further details are still scarce, even with the film being revealed in early 2018. All we know thus far is that Nintendo and Illumination are targeting a 2022 release date, though it’s possible the COVID-19 pandemic has shifted expectations. Universal and Nintendo are co-producing the project, with Universal being responsible for the film’s distribution.
Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto commented back in early 2020 on why now was a good time for another Mario film.
More recently, Nintendo has added Illumination CEO Chris Meledandri to its board of directors in order to help with future Nintendo films.
Illumination is the studio behind CG films like Despicable Me, The Life of Pets, and 2018's The Grinch.
Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer/despicable person for IGN.