Mario and Minions? Illumination to co produce Nintendo film

Super Mario (Photo: Mario/Facebook)

TOKYO — Mario is getting together with the Minions.

Japanese video-game company Nintendo Co. says a movie starring the plumber in the Super Mario franchise is in the works, being co-produced with Chris Meledandri, the chief executive of Illumination Entertainment, the U.S. animation studio behind the popular “Despicable Me” series.

Nintendo’s star game designer Shigeru Miyamoto told reporters Thursday the script is mostly finished and is promising a “fun” movie, since Meledandri shares his thinking on creative projects.

The movie, two years in the making after a meeting between Meledandri and Miyamoto, is set for global distribution through Universal, which co-owns Illumination, according to the Kyoto-based maker of Pokemon games and the popular Switch machine.

They did not give other details.