Nintendo legend Shigeru Miyamoto has confirmed that a standalone Yoshi movie was at one point on the table during the studio discussions that produced The Super Mario Bros.
Movie.
The Illumination-produced feature, released in April 2023 and co-produced with Nintendo, included only brief Yoshi appearances and a post-credits Yoshi egg that many observers read as a setup for future stories.
Background and context
The Super Mario Bros.
Movie premiered in April 2023 and was developed in partnership between Nintendo and Illumination.
The film featured Mario and his cast in a theatrical adaptation of Nintendo’s flagship franchise and included quick glimpses of Yoshis when characters passed through Yoshi’s Island.
The post-credits egg sequence left a narrative thread tied to Yoshi’s fate in the film’s setting.
Miyamoto on the proposed Yoshi film
Speaking with Famitsu, Miyamoto said that the team had wanted to feature Yoshi more prominently but could not find room for the character in the first movie.
He explained that while a few Yoshis make brief appearances during the protagonists’ journey, the filmmakers intentionally left a Yoshi-related cliffhanger — the egg shown at the end — to preserve future options.
During production, Miyamoto said, the creative team even considered a standalone picture focused on a single Yoshi’s misadventures in New York City, but the project ultimately evolved into the story that was produced.
Paraphrased statement
Miyamoto summarized the decision this way: the production team loved the idea of a Yoshi-centered story and explored a proposal in which a Yoshi would be “entangled in various escapades across New York City,” but they could not fit that arc into the first film.
Instead, they left a narrative opening — the Yoshi egg in the post-credits scene — as a way to preserve the character’s future potential.
Why it matters
Yoshi is one of Nintendo’s most enduring characters, first introduced in Super Mario World on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System.
The character has headlined its own games over the years, including Yoshi’s Story on the Nintendo 64 and more recently Yoshi’s Crafted World on Nintendo Switch.
Miyamoto’s confirmation that a Yoshi film was considered underscores Nintendo’s interest in preserving flexibility for its IP across film projects.
Verified facts in this report include the April 2023 release of The Super Mario Bros.
Movie, the films’ brief Yoshi appearances and post-credits egg, and Miyamoto’s remarks to Famitsu about the development process and the abandoned Yoshi-centric proposal.
Movie.
The Illumination-produced feature, released in April 2023 and co-produced with Nintendo, included only brief Yoshi appearances and a post-credits Yoshi egg that many observers read as a setup for future stories.
Background and context
The Super Mario Bros.
Movie premiered in April 2023 and was developed in partnership between Nintendo and Illumination.
The film featured Mario and his cast in a theatrical adaptation of Nintendo’s flagship franchise and included quick glimpses of Yoshis when characters passed through Yoshi’s Island.
The post-credits egg sequence left a narrative thread tied to Yoshi’s fate in the film’s setting.
Miyamoto on the proposed Yoshi film
Speaking with Famitsu, Miyamoto said that the team had wanted to feature Yoshi more prominently but could not find room for the character in the first movie.
He explained that while a few Yoshis make brief appearances during the protagonists’ journey, the filmmakers intentionally left a Yoshi-related cliffhanger — the egg shown at the end — to preserve future options.
During production, Miyamoto said, the creative team even considered a standalone picture focused on a single Yoshi’s misadventures in New York City, but the project ultimately evolved into the story that was produced.
Paraphrased statement
Miyamoto summarized the decision this way: the production team loved the idea of a Yoshi-centered story and explored a proposal in which a Yoshi would be “entangled in various escapades across New York City,” but they could not fit that arc into the first film.
Instead, they left a narrative opening — the Yoshi egg in the post-credits scene — as a way to preserve the character’s future potential.
Why it matters
Yoshi is one of Nintendo’s most enduring characters, first introduced in Super Mario World on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System.
The character has headlined its own games over the years, including Yoshi’s Story on the Nintendo 64 and more recently Yoshi’s Crafted World on Nintendo Switch.
Miyamoto’s confirmation that a Yoshi film was considered underscores Nintendo’s interest in preserving flexibility for its IP across film projects.
Verified facts in this report include the April 2023 release of The Super Mario Bros.
Movie, the films’ brief Yoshi appearances and post-credits egg, and Miyamoto’s remarks to Famitsu about the development process and the abandoned Yoshi-centric proposal.