The Super Mario Bros. Movie won’t be out for another week, but Seth Rogen is willing to reprise his role as the iconic video game ape Donkey Kong in his own solo film.
The comedian confirmed his interest in a Donkey Kong spin-off during an interview with ComicBook.com. He believes that a Donkey Kong Country film adaptation would be something that people would want. He also believes that a solo Donkey Kong film would give more insight into who Donkey Kong is since most people just know him as someone who hates Mario and throws barrels. So perhaps this film would give new light on this iconic video game character, as well as give him a new adventure.
“It would be fun. I honestly had a great time doing it and I think like it’s a big world, gigantic, and it seems to be a thing that people are excited to see.
“I think in the film and in the game I think all you really know about Donkey Kong is that he throws barrels and he does not like Mario very much. That’s honestly kind of what I ran with was this idea that he hates Mario, that they are kind have like an adversarial relationship, that he’s annoyed by him, that he doesn’t want to be stuck with him, that he wishes he was on this adventure without him. To me that was funny and that was kind of the root of the character and it was kind of born of the mythology of the games.”
When Nintendo announced that a new Super Mario Bros. film will be released, Shigeru Miyamoto confirmed that Rogen would play the role of Donkey Kong. This performance was teased during the second trailer of the film, where he and Mario fought in a Super Smash Bros-like arena.
Interestingly, there were rumors that a Donkey Kong solo film was already being planned back in 2021, with the comedian in mind to take on the role. Perhaps this solo film could come to fruition if the results of The Super Mario Bros. Movie give Nintendo the confidence to greenlit another film.
If you want to see Rogen voice the iconic ape, The Super Mario Bros. Movie will hit theaters on April 5, 2023.