Nintendo: Mario’s Voice Actor Charles Martinet Is Stepping Away from Iconic Role

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Charles Martinet, the longtime voice of Mario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Baby Luigi and Baby Mario for Nintendo video games, is stepping away from his role as a voice actor for the company.

Nintendo announced Monday that Martinet will serve as a “Mario Ambassador” moving forward.

Martinet began working for Nintendo in 1991 as the voice of Mario, making his debut in video games for Super Mario 64.

Nintendo previously hinted a change was coming when Martinet’s voice did not appear in the trailers for the upcoming games Super Mario Bros. Wonder and WarioWare: Move It. The company confirmed to Polygon that Martinet was not part of the development for those games.

Martinet has been the subject of significant fan support in recent months, particularly following the reveal that Chris Pratt would be featured as the voice of Mario in The Super Mario Bros. Movie. Charlie Day served as the voice of Luigi, with Martinet being limited to minor roles as Giuseppe and Mario’s father in the film.

The 67-year-old said in 2021 that he hoped to play Mario for the rest of his life. It seems something changed along the way, with Nintendo choosing to go in a different direction in video games and on the big screen.