There have been many complaints about the new Mario movie choosing to use Chris Pratt as the voice of the iconic Nintendo plumber over Charles Martinet. While the producer of the filmhas defended the controversial casting, many are still disappointed they may not get to hear Martinet on the big screen saying, “It’s a me, Mario!”
However, many have forgotten that Martinet wasn’t the original voice of the character at all. In fact, not only was there a voice actor that performed the character in the first-ever Mario movie, but several anime and even a unique video game far before the voice we all know and love today came to be. He’s even quite the iconic actor having brought to life many popular characters throughout the years.
Related:Why It Makes Sense Not To Cast Charles Martinet As Mario For The Movie
Toru Furuya - The Anime Voice Of Mario
While the first voice of Mario was arguably Peter Cullen in theDonkey Kong Cartoonfrom 1982, it is entirely possible that Toru Furuya was the first actor to play the character.Super Mario’s Fire Brigadeis old and obscure enough that no one currently knows its official release date. However, this fire safety video featured Furuya as Mario for the first time.
This wasn’t the only time Furuya voiced Mario either. He went on to be the plumber in three other OVAs includingSuper Mario Traffic Safety,Amada Anime Series: Super Mario Brothers, andSuper Mario World: Mario & Yoshi’s Adventure Land. He even voiced Mario in the first-ever movie for the character —Super Mario Brothers: Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach. This was also the first time a movie had ever been created based on a video game, making it quite the special release.
This was all three years before Martinet would voice the character at all for the first time inthe 1992Super Mario Bros. Pinball Game. In fact, Larry Moran, Lou Albano, Walker Boone, Ronald B. Ruben, and Nicholas Glaeser would all play the character — some even in video games — before Martinet ever did.
Furuya’s Other Iconic Roles
Furuya’s first role was as Kid in the 1966 black and white animePirate Prince. From there, he went on to land several major roles including main character Amuro Ray inthe originalMobile Suit Gundam. Of course, most Western fans will recognize him from theDragon Ballseries, not only for his role as Yamcha throughout the years, but for singing the theme song from the original 1986 anime. All of this happened before his first confirmed role as Mario.
From there, he not only went on to play a major role inSaint Seiya: Knights of the Zodiacbut also played Tuxedo Mask inSailor Moon. He also played other iconic shonen characters including Sabo fromOne Pieceand Shuren fromBleach. His career hasn’t stopped either with his voice set to be featured inDetective Conan: Zero’s Tea Timein 2022. Suffice it to say, he has had an illustrious career over 56 years.
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Why Was Furuya’s Time As Mario Forgotten?
Unfortunately, none of the OVAs or movies that Furuya voiced Mario in ever received official international releases. This is likely why most Western audiences wouldn’t even recognize his name connected to the Nintendo series in any way.
However, what is particularly strange is that Furuya was not chosen to continue voicing Mario over Martinet. He actually continued voicing the character in Japan until 1998 and provided his voice for all of the Satellaview games with the character includingBS Super Mario Collection,BS Super Mario USA Power Challenge,andExcitebike: Bun Bun Mario Battle Stadium. While it’s likely easier to have one person perform the role across multiple countries, it does break voice acting tradition of allowing the same person to voice a character through their life.
Will Fuyura Ever Return To Voicing Mario?
While there is no confirmation yet, it is not impossible that Fuyura could be called upon to voice Mario once more in the Mario movie set to release in 2022. It would certainly be an amazing callback to the character’s origins in the country for this to happen.
Sadly, it’s been confirmed by Fuyura himself that the previous anime films will never receive another release, making it incredibly difficult to find his previous works. Especially with many Satellaview games are now lost media, hardcore fans would have to pay hundreds of dollars for individual VHS releases ofAmada Anime Series: Super Mario Brothersepisodes andSuper Mario Brothers: Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach. While some of the older anime have also been uploaded to YouTube, the quality is often questionable, and there is not currently a legal way to be able to watch these old creations.
