Charles Martinet is retiring from playing Mario after decades of “yahoos” and “mamma mias,” but Final Fantasy XVI actor Ben Starr is ready to take up the mantle. Starr, who played Clive Rosfield in this year’s 16th Final Fantasy entry, posted his very serious and totally real audition on X today. It seems he chose to channel Clive’s mesmerizing, gravelly vocals when taking his shot at playing gaming’s famous Italian plumber. Nintendo is surely already racing to the phone to give Starr a call. You can see history in the making by watching the FFXVI star’s audition to be the new Mario below.
My official audition to play #Mario. https://t.co/pNcInE2VrE pic.twitter.com/MUHGJC0W4W
— Ben Starr (@The_Ben_Starr) August 23, 2023
If you’ve never pictured what it would be like to see Mario whisper the F-bomb like he’s a Game of Thrones character, well, the floodgates are surely open now. All joking aside, Starr takes his tongue-in-cheek audition so seriously that it’s hard to look away. The FFXVI star comes up with so many different ways to say “it’s-a me, Mario” that it’s hard to choose a favorite. Personally, my pick has to be “What the **** are you looking at? It’s-a me-a, a-Mario.”
If Starr can’t suit up in Mario’s overalls in future games – let’s be honest, it’s not going to happen – maybe there is still hope that we see him fill a new role alongside Chris Pratt in The Super Mario Bros. Movie 2.
