Jack Black’s portrayal of Bowser in the upcoming Super Mario Bros. was partially inspired by the main antagonist of Star Wars, Darth Vader.
Talk to IGN (opens in a new tab), Black has said he enjoys playing the bad guy and often prefers the bad guys to the good guys in movies. “A lot of times, villains are my favorite characters in movies, just because they’re so interesting and they make the drama and excitement 10x more effective. It’s like, Darth Vader is my favorite part of Star Wars, and without Darth Vader, this movie is really boring. You have to have the spice of real danger, the evil that lurks in the shadows. So I was excited to take that.
When asked specifically if Darth Vader served as the inspiration for his performance as Bowser, Black replied, “I would say yes, a little,” adding, “Darth Vader has a lower register, and I also had to go lower than my natural voice. .”
There’s little debate that Bowser and Darth Vader are both pop culture’s most iconic big bads, but they couldn’t come from more different worlds, making this a surprising revelation from Black. But, listen back (opens in a new tab) to Darth Vader and comparing him to Bowser in the new Mario movie trailerI hear a slight resemblance in the tone of the voices and the speaking cadences of the two characters.
The movie Super Mario Bros. is set to hit US theaters on April 5, followed by an April 28 release in Japan and finally, Peacock’s debut in May.
In the meantime, here are the best video game movies there right now.