The First Nintendo Direct of 2026 is a Super Mario Galaxy Movie Direct Coming This Sunday

Jan 23, 2026 at 10:42am EST
Animated characters resembling Mario and Luigi looking at Bowser in a castle setting.

Nintendo has officially announced the first Nintendo Direct event for 2026, and it's kicking off the year by showcasing what could be its best-selling product: The Super Mario Galaxy Movie. The sequel to the billion-dollar box-office hit is due to hit theatres this coming April 3, 2026, and we're going to get another look at it this coming Sunday, January 25, when Nintendo debuts the second Super Mario Galaxy Movie Direct at 6am PT / 9am ET / 2pm BT.

The announcement was first made through the Nintendo Today! app, before hitting all of Nintendo's official social media channels. As per usual, the news also came with an obligatory notice telling fans to "Please note that no game information will be included in this presentation."

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This will be our third look at the film, going back to its initial teaser in September 2025 and its first dedicated direct back in November 2025. In the last direct, we got a look at two characters joining the film franchise: Rosalina, who will be played by Brie Larson, and Bowser Jr., who will be played by Benny Safdie.

For Sunday's direct, while nothing is necessarily guaranteed, we will almost certainly get a look a Yoshi and the actor behind the green dinosaur. In the run-up to the last direct, just two days before it officially premiered, a collaboration with Pilsbury spoiled our first look at Yoshi's design for the film, and spoiled the confirmation of Bowser Jr. as one of the new characters being introduced.

We've known that Yoshi was going to be involved in this sequel since the first movie came out, thanks to a cliffhanger tease at the end of the Super Mario Bros. Movie, so seeing the character as part of a promotional collaboration wasn't the biggest surprise, but we've yet to see him in motion in the film. Now that we're nearly a full month into 2026, and the film's April premiere date is fast approaching, it feels like this Sunday will be when we get to see the green dinosaur in action in the film for the first time.

About the author: David has been writing about videogames, technology, and culture since 2020, with a focus on reporting daily news across multiple publications, including GameDaily.Biz, GameSkinny, and PlayStation Universe before joining Wccftech in 2025. David started contributing as Canada/US reporter for Wccftech's gaming section in 2025. Besides being up-to-date on the industry's movements, he loves interviewing developers, reviewing games, and writing intricate essays about the symbolism and layered meanings to be found in rich narratives as he's done for publications like GamesIndustry.Biz, LostInCult, and others. Outside of games he loves movies, music, theatre, his hometown, and his family, though not necessarily in that order.

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