While Nintendo, Illumination, and Universal Pictures are basking in the glory of the many box office records set by The Super Mario Galaxy Movie—the second film in the beloved movie franchise based on the Super Mario Bros. video games—we’ve learned of an interesting connection to the epic animated series Jujutsu Kaisen.
The animator behind the incredible 2D introduction of Fox McCloud in Super Mario Galaxy turned out to be Benjamin Faure, who, before joining the Nintendo-Illumination film project, had lent his artistic talent to the extraordinary animations of Jujutsu Kaisen. The artist celebrated the success of Super Mario Galaxy with a post on X:
“I had an incredible time working as the 3D animation supervisor on the film, and I was truly honored to be in charge of Fox’s 2D opening sequence,” Benjamin Faure wrote on his profile. “Having the chance to bring both 2D and 3D animation to life on this project made the whole experience even more special. I’m grateful to have been a part of it! Congratulations to the entire team that worked hard on this project, and thank you for your support!“ In a subsequent post, he added: ”Thank you all for your messages and support (I’ll continue to reply to everyone), but I also wanted to mention the great Takaya Imamura, who designed Fox McCloud for the first Star Fox: without him, this character wouldn’t exist! Please thank him above all. Thanks again to all of you—you’re truly amazing!”
The animated sequence featuring Fox McCloud is a stylish nod to the past within the dazzling story of Super Mario Galaxy: in the scene, animated in a flawless retro style, Fox explains that he’s been stranded in the Mario universe and separated from Slippy, Peppy, and Falco, the other members of the Star Fox intergalactic crew.
As for the anime series, whose third season recently wrapped up, Benjamin Faure is credited as a key animator on nine episodes of Jujutsu Kaisen, spread across the first and second seasons. So, considering he worked on one of the best anime series out there, it’s no surprise that the Fox sequence in Super Mario Galaxy has so much style.
The Super Mario Galaxy movie is now in theaters.
