‘You are all Numba One in my heart!’
Mamma mia!
Charles Martinet, the voice actor behind Nintendo’s famous, animated plumber Super Mario, has officially announced his retirement from voicing the character in any upcoming projects.
“Charles Martinet has been the original voice of Mario in Nintendo games for a long time, as far back as Super Mario 64,” announced Nintendo of America in a statement on X (formerly Twitter). “Charles is now moving into the brand-new role of Mario Ambassador. With this transition, he will be stepping back from recording character voices for our games.
“But he’ll continue to travel the world sharing the joy of Mario and interacting with you all,” continued the statement. “It has been an honor working with Charles to help bring Mario to life for so many years and we want to thank and celebrate him. Please keep an eye out for a special video message from Shigeru Miyamoto and Charles himself, which we will post at a future date.”
Martinet, 67, later shared the statement on his own account, adding, “My new Adventure begins! You are all Numba One in my heart!”
The Post reached out to Marinet for comment.
He has voiced the mustachioed plumber since 1991 and recorded several of Mario’s iconic catchphrases, including “Let’s-a go,” “Mamma mia” and “Wahoo!”
Appearing in nearly 150 Nintendo titles, Martinet has also voiced other characters, including Mario’s trusted sidekick and brother, Luigi, and the duo’s archrivals, Wario and Waluigi.
Martinet recently appeared in a cameo role in the star-studded “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” which starred Chris Pratt, Anya-Taylor Joy and Jack Black.
Several fans reached out to the voice actor to thank him for his work and the role he played in their lives.
“Your work has inspired me since I was a child,” posted one fan. “As a kid I was inspired by Mario’s fun-loving and determined adventures, and as an adult you’ve inspired me in what it means to be a voice actor, and more importantly, a good person. Thank you. And enjoy this new adventure!”
“Thanks for everything, Charles. you’re still our 1-up boy,” wrote a second account.
“Thank you for being part of my entire childhood with the presence of your voice, thank you for accompanying my adventures in each game through the mushroom kingdom,” gushed a third person.
“Thank you for everything Charles, you are a legend, our legend.”
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