Now that longtime Super Mario voice actor Charles Martinet has announced he's retiring from full-time voicing duties of the character and transitioning to his new role as Mario Ambassador, rumors are swirling over who will fill his larger-than-life brown plumber shoes. One name that quickly started swirling on social media is Chris Pratt, the A-list Hollywood actor who recently voiced Mario in The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

The move would be a bit surprising and ironic if it actually came to pass since Nintendo fans were notoriously harsh about the choice of Chris Pratt to voice Mario for the film when it was initially announced, finding him an ill-fitting, over-booked animated voice actor who was also not Italian. This would be a bit like if whoever came up with the idea to give Sonic the Hedgehog those hideous teeth became the full-time Sonic designer for all games going forward.

It's also unlikely given that Chris Pratt is a full-time mega-Hollywood star with a full workload (assuming the writers and actors strike will ever end), who might not be able to commit to voice acting for all of the various Mario properties as a side hustle.

Nevertheless, the success of The Super Mario Bros. Movie despite its horrid reviews and overcoming the initial skepticism of Chris Pratt as the lead voice has fans wondering if Nintendo will get the last laugh by declaring Chris Pratt the new full-time voice of the franchise. It's an enticing prospective case of life-imitating-art-imitating-video game (I think). Perhaps Nintendo was planning this all along, like a late stage surprise boss battle twist, leaving its detractors reeling… while shouting “Mama mia!” of course.