Super Mario’s trip to the big screen has been a long one, but it’s finally a reality. With an all-star voice cast set, fans are already excited to see what misadventures the iconic plumber and his allies will get in. Of course, that means the video game’s resident damsel-in-distress, Princess Peach, is along for the ride. What got video game lovers even more excited is the fact that Peach will be voiced by Last Night in Soho’s Anya Taylor-Joy. And voicing a video game character seems to come with some perks, as the star recently revealed the best part of playing the beloved gaming icon.
llumination and Nintendo seem to have found the perfect actress to take on the role. Anya Taylor-Joy seems as though she could tap into the demure and resilient nature of the beloved character. While some have seen video games as something for children, the popularity of Super Mario has proven otherwise, and Taylor-Joy got to know about that firsthand. With this, he Queen’s Gambit lead revealed to Entertainment Tonight the major perk that comes with playing a character in the iconic franchise:
Oh, it is so much fun. We started doing little bits and pieces of it already. The greatest part is that I get to say I am doing homework or work or research just by gaming, which is pretty great. I have to. The fan base is so intense, of course, I have to do it. It’s so much fun.
Who wouldn’t use such an opportunity to play video games? I mean, the actress did have to do “research,” and I’d totally consider the hours she spent gaming to be work-related. In essence, she needed to know how could best inhabit her character, and there’s nothing like on-the-job training. Hopefully, she hasn’t been the only one researching, as Chris Pratt and Charlie Day might want to play as Mario and Luigi before voicing them.
Playing such a beloved character would be challenging for any actress, especially someone like Peach. Gamers have been playing as (and rescuing) Peach for more than three decades now, as the Super Mario franchise has expanded tremendously. When she debuted in 1985, she was nothing more than a hapless damsel. But over the years, the character has become an integral part of the popular gaming series. She’s even taken on Bowser and his brood by herself a few times. Hopefully, this change will be reflected in Anya Taylor-Joy’s portrayal of the video game icon.
The actress seems excited to breathe life into Princess Peach in the realm of animation. The character never got her chance to shine in the 1993 live-action adaptation of the franchise, which might’ve been for the better. It’ll be great to see what Taylor-Joy brings to the princess’ big-screen debut. Fans can do so when the movie opens on in theaters on Dec. 21, 2022.