List of Mario franchise characters

The Mario franchise is a video game series created by Nintendo. Nintendo is usually the developer and publisher of the franchise's games, but various games are developed by third-party companies such as Intelligent Systems and Nintendo Cube. Games in the Mario franchise primarily revolve around the main protagonist Mario and often involve the trope of Bowser as the main antagonist kidnapping Princess Peach, with Mario then rescuing her. Many characters have goals or plot arcs that vary between series; for example, the Luigi's Mansion games focus on Luigi ridding a haunted building of ghost-like creatures known as Boos, and Wario stars in games that center around his greed and desire for money and treasure.
The franchise began with Donkey Kong in 1981, where Mario, Donkey Kong, and Pauline originated. Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto built them off the base of characters from Popeye. Unable to license the characters, Miyamoto made later changes to their appearances and personalities, such as a more lighthearted tone. Due to the breakthrough critical and commercial success of Donkey Kong, Mario reappeared in Mario Bros. in 1983, which introduced Mario's twin brother Luigi, and Super Mario Bros. in 1985, which introduced Toad alongside numerous enemies, with Bowser and Princess Peach replacing Donkey Kong and Pauline, respectively.
Each series has introduced numerous characters, many of them recurring. Some have starred in their own games or in supporting roles. The games all typically share common enemies.
Mario (voiced by Kevin Afghani) is the main character of the Mario franchise and the mascot of Nintendo as a whole. He originally appeared in 1981's Donkey Kong as "Jumpman", designed by Shigeru Miyamoto. While Mario was initially a carpenter, he later took the role of a plumber. From 1992 to 2023, Mario was voiced by Charles Martinet. In most of his appearances, Mario rescues a damsel in distress (often Princess Peach) from an antagonist (often Bowser). Mario's younger brother is Luigi, and his greedy rival is Wario. Yoshi serves as Mario's steed in several games, including Super Mario World. Since his introduction, Mario's abilities include jumping, such as onto an enemy's head as an attack. Mario uses power-ups, such as the Super Mushroom (which allows him to grow larger and survive an additional hit), the Super Star (which grants him temporary invincibility), and the Fire Flower (which allows him to throw fireballs). Several power-ups grant Mario the ability to fly, such as the Super Leaf from Super Mario Bros. 3. According to Guinness World Records, Mario is the second most recognizable video game character after Pac-Man. Mario has seen numerous cultural appearances, such as during the closing ceremony of the 2016 Summer Olympics, where Japanese prime minister Shinzō Abe appeared dressed as the character. Mario has appeared as the protagonist in two feature films: the live-action Super Mario Bros. in 1993 and the animated box office hit The Super Mario Bros. Movie in 2023.
Mario was voiced by Chris Pratt in The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
Luigi (voiced by Kevin Afghani) is the younger twin brother of Mario, who Luigi feels a sense of envy and reverence towards. In the 1983 game Mario Bros., Luigi was introduced as the second player character, with many similarities to Mario. While he was initially identical to Mario, he began developing differences in Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels (1986), which gave him a higher and further jump at the expense of responsiveness and precision. In the North American version of Super Mario Bros. 2 (1988), Luigi was given a taller and thinner appearance than Mario, which played a key role in shaping his modern appearance. Luigi's first starring role was in 1993's Mario Is Missing!, though he played only minor roles in subsequent games until 2001 with Luigi's Mansion, where he plays the role of a frightened, unsure, and goofy protagonist attempting to save his brother. The Year of Luigi was celebrated in 2013, which saw many Luigi games released to commemorate the character's 30th anniversary.
Luigi also appeared in the Mario Kart series, Super Smash Bros. series as an unlockable fighter, and the Mario Party series. He was voiced by Charlie Day in The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
Princess Peach Toadstool (voiced by Samantha Kelly) is the princess of the Mario franchise's Mushroom Kingdom. In the main series games, she typically plays the role of a damsel in distress who needs to be rescued by Mario. When playable, she typically has the ability to float in the air, and is physically taller than Mario. Her first playable appearance in a main series Mario game was 1988's Super Mario Bros. 2, while her second was 2013's Super Mario 3D World. Peach played a starring role in Super Princess Peach (2005), where she aims to rescue Mario, Luigi, and Toad, aided by a parasol named Perry and several abilities based on her emotions—or "vibes". She makes frequent appearances in spin-off Mario games, such as the Mario Kart series and the Mario sports games. In the 2017 game Super Mario Odyssey, after being captured by and forced to marry Bowser, and subsequently rescued by Mario, she rejects both of them and instead takes a trip around the world, though Mario rejoins her. Peach again stars in her adventure in the 2024 game Princess Peach: Showtime!, where she saves the Sparkle Theater from a sorceress named Grape, helped by a ribbon named Stella and various transformations including Swordfighter Peach and Patissiere Peach.
Since 2001, Peach appeared in Super Smash Bros. series as a fighter alongside Bowser in Super Smash Bros. Melee, and later in its succeeded games. She was voiced by Anya Taylor-Joy in The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
Princess Daisy (voiced by Giselle Fernandez) is the princess of Sarasaland, the setting of Super Mario Land (1989). Since then, she has primarily appeared as a playable character in spin-off Mario games, especially Mario sports games. Super Mario Run (2016) marks Daisy's playable debut in a main series game, where she is able to perform a double jump. She acts more tomboyish than Princess Peach, exemplified by her appearances in the Mario sports games. Some consider her and Luigi to be a couple, despite Daisy being rescued by Mario in Super Mario Land and Super Mario Run. She is also a playable character in Super Mario Bros. Wonder. Daisy also appeared in the Mario Kart series, beginning with 2003's Mario Kart: Double Dash, and Super Smash Bros. series, beginning with 2018's Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as Peach's echo-fighter.
Toad (voiced by Samantha Kelly) is an anthropomorphic mushroom-like character. He debuted in Super Mario Bros. (1985), though his first starring role was in Wario's Woods (1994), in which the player is able to control Toad to solve puzzles. Toad made his playable debut in a main series Mario game in 1988 with Super Mario Bros. 2, and frequently acts as a non-playable character in Mario role-playing games. The character is a member of the eponymous Toad species, which includes characters such as Captain Toad, Toadette, and Toadsworth. He was voiced by Keegan-Michael Key in The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023).
Yoshi (voiced by Kazumi Totaka) is a green anthropomorphic dinosaur character, first appeared in the 1990 game Super Mario World. He is depicted with a long tongue that can be used to eat enemies, and can turn the enemies he eats into eggs that release power-ups or can be thrown. Yoshi is a rideable character for the heroes or a playable character in most of the Mario spin-offs, including his own series. Yoshi also appeared in Mario Kart series, Super Smash Bros. series as a fighter, and Mario Party series.
Donkey Kong (voiced by Takashi Nagasako) is an anthropomorphic gorilla that stars in the Donkey Kong franchise. He is the leader of the Kong Family, a group of various primates and is depicted as the grandson of Cranky Kong who appeared in the 1981 arcade game, Donkey Kong, though, he appears as an antagonist in the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series. He is depicted as a cheerful and powerful character. Alongside Mario and friends, Donkey Kong also appeared in Mario Kart series, Super Smash Bros. series as a fighter, and Mario Party series.
Donkey Kong was voiced by Seth Rogen in The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
Pauline (voiced by Kate Higgins) debuted in Donkey Kong (1981) as Lady, and is further featured in Donkey Kong (1994) for Game Boy, and the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series. She was created by Shigeru Miyamoto, is the earliest example of a female with a speaking role in a video game, and is cited as a famous example of a damsel in distress in fiction. She is the mayor of New Donk City in Super Mario Odyssey.
Birdo, also known as Birdette, and known in Japan as Catherine, (voiced by Kazumi Totaka) is depicted as a pink, anthropomorphic dinosaur who wears a red bow on her head, and has a round mouth that can fire eggs as projectiles. Birdo first appeared in Super Mario Bros. 2 as a recurring boss character. Since then, she has been a recurring playable character in various franchise spin-offs. Birdo has been referred to as a "man who thinks of himself as female" in earlier depictions, such as in the Japanese manual for the early prototype game Doki Doki Panic, and was considered female in later games. It is heavily speculated that Birdo is transgender; she is considered to be one of the first ever transgender video game characters.
Poochy is portrayed as Yoshi's helper dog. He debuted in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island and continued appearing throughout the Yoshi series, such as in Poochy & Yoshi's Woolly World. In the games, he can do things that Yoshi cannot, such as sniff out hidden items, cross over dangerous terrain, and jump over walls to give Yoshi a boost out of his wall jumps. In 2023, Poochy was added to Mario Kart Tour as a playable character.
Professor Elvin Gadd (voiced by Kazumi Totaka), more commonly known as Professor E. Gadd, is a diminutive and elderly scientist and inventor. He primarily appears in the Luigi's Mansion series, in which he invented several objects, such as Luigi's Poltergust 3000 and Gooigi from Luigi's Mansion 3. He is referenced in Super Mario Sunshine as the inventor of Mario's F.L.U.D.D., a device that allows him to spray water. The character has made cameo appearances in series such as Mario Party and Mario & Luigi. He makes ambiguous gibberish sounds when speaking, inspired by the language of "Animalese" used in the Animal Crossing series when Totaka invented his voice.
Toadsworth (voiced by Scott Burns) is an elderly Toad character who is Princess Peach's steward. He is depicted showing concern for the princess' safety and acts as a prime caretaker for the Toads. He debuted in Super Mario Sunshine for GameCube, in which he goes on vacation with Mario, Peach and the other Toads. In Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time, he is revealed to have cared for the princess since she was a baby.
Toadette (voiced by Samantha Kelly) is a pink Toad character who debuted in Mario Kart: Double Dash (2003) as a playable driver. Toadette is depicted with two long round pigtails with white spots and a dress, to distinguish her from Toad. Since Super Mario Odyssey, Toadette is a member of the Toad Brigade and has the role of an archivist. Depending on the game, she is either a supporting character or a protagonist, playable in most of the Mario spin-off games. In New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe, a power-up called the Super Crown allows Toadette to transform into Peachette, a form that highly resembles Princess Peach. As Peachette, she can use Peach's floating jump to hover, and can perform a double jump. She also returns as a playable character in Super Mario Bros. Wonder.
Rosalina (voiced by Laura Faye Smith) is a princess character introduced in the 2007 Wii game Super Mario Galaxy. As a child who fled into space after her mother's death, she becomes the adoptive mother of the Lumas—mysterious and friendly star-like creatures that inhabit space in the Mario franchise. She resides in the Comet Observatory, a starship used to traverse the Mario universe. In later appearances, she typically takes the role of a supporting character, and primarily appears in spin-off games such as the Mario sports games, Mario Kart series, and Super Smash Bros. series. In Super Mario 3D World (2013), she is a playable character, and is unlocked through gameplay.
The Lumas are depicted as friendly star-like creatures. They first appear in Super Mario Galaxy, where they have the ability to transform into various game objects, explorable planetoids, and entire levels. Lumas come in a variety of colors, though are most commonly yellow. One particular Luma, known as Baby Luma, or Young Master Luma, is a major character in the Super Mario Galaxy games, granting Mario or Luigi the power to Star Spin. In the Illumination animated film The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023), Juliet Jelenic voices a nihilistic blue Luma named Lumalee, that first appeared in Super Mario Galaxy as a salesman. Held prisoner by Bowser, Lumalee cheerfully laments the pain and suffering awaiting all those held prisoner, greatly depressing his fellow prisoners.
Captain Toad (voiced by Samantha Kelly) is an explorer and the leader of the Toad Brigade, debuting in Super Mario Galaxy. He subsequently appears in Super Mario Galaxy 2 and Super Mario Odyssey, and as a "treasure tracker". He makes several cameos within Super Smash Bros. and debuted in the Mario Kart series in Mario Kart Tour as a playable racer. He is the main protagonist in the subset of levels in Super Mario 3D World called Captain Toad's Adventures, and in the game Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker.
Nabbit (voiced by Dawn M. Bennett) is a rabbit-like creature who steals items from Toad. He was introduced in New Super Mario Bros. U (2012). In New Super Luigi U, New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe, and Super Mario Bros. Wonder, he is a playable character.
Diddy Kong (Diddy) (voiced by Katsumi Suzuki) is an anthropomorphic monkey who is Donkey Kong's nephew, sidekick, and best friend, appearing in the Donkey Kong and Mario franchises. Diddy Kong made his first appearance in the 1994 Super Nintendo Entertainment System game Donkey Kong Country. He is the main protagonist of Diddy Kong Racing and its DS remake. He is depicted as a cheerful and kind character. Created by Rare, the name Diddy is a British term meaning "little".
Cranky Kong (voiced by Takashi Nagasako) is an older Kong. His first appearance was in 1981's Donkey Kong, where, as the game's antagonist, he kidnapped Pauline, though he was stopped by Mario. He is portrayed as the grandfather of Donkey Kong in the games, and the father of him in the 2023 film, which he was voiced by Fred Armisen.
Bowser or King Koopa (voiced by Kenneth W. James) is the king of the turtle-like Koopa race, a selfish king who wants to take over the entire world and the Mushroom Kingdom. He is depicted as Mario's nemesis, and is the final boss of most Mario games. He is playable in most Mario spin-off games.
Dry Bowser is a recurring antagonist in the Mario series. Debuting as a form of Bowser after losing his flesh in New Super Mario Bros., the character has appeared as his own being starting with Mario Kart Wii, often serving as the final antagonist in the main games. Dry Bowser appears in Mario Party: Island Tour, Mario Party 10, and is a playable character in several of the Mario spin-off games.
Bowser also appeared in Super Smash Bros. series as a fighter, beginning with the 2001 game, Super Smash Bros. Melee and later in its succeeded games for Wii, Nintendo 3DS, Wii U and Nintendo Switch.
Bowser was voiced by Jack Black in The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
The Koopalings are seven siblings who first appeared as boss characters in the 1988 game Super Mario Bros. 3. Their individual names are Ludwig, Lemmy, Roy, Iggy, Wendy, Morton, and Larry. According to former Nintendo of America employee Dayvv Brooks, who named the characters, at least five of the seven Koopalings were named after musicians (Ludwig van Beethoven, Lemmy Kilmister, Roy Orbison, Iggy Pop, and Wendy O. Williams), while Morton was named after talk show host Morton Downey Jr.; in the case of Larry, Brooks initially stated that the character was named after Larry Mullen Jr., an Irish musician, best known as the drummer and co-founder of the rock band U2, only to contradict this in a later interview where he instead states the name was given simply because he felt that the character "looked like a Larry".
The Koopalings were originally established as Bowser's children. Older Mario games maintain reference to them as such in updated manuals and re-releases. They have since been depicted as Bowser's minions in games following the release of New Super Mario Bros. Wii in 2009, with Shigeru Miyamoto stating in 2012 that "our current story is that the seven Koopalings are not Bowser's children. Bowser's only child is Bowser Jr." The Koopalings have additionally appeared as playable characters in spin-off Mario games and the Super Smash Bros. series, and have been featured in non-video game Mario media including the animated Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World. They are currently voiced by David J. Goldfarb, Carlee McManus, Dan Falcone, Ryan Higgins, Ashley Flannegan, David Cooke, and Michelle Hippe, respectively. Previously, in New Super Mario Bros. Wii and games that reuse its voice assets, Ludwig and Iggy had been voiced by Mike Vaughn, while the others, sans Roy, were previously voiced by Lani Minella.
Wario (voiced by Kevin Afghani) is an obese yet muscular, hot-tempered, and greedy man. He is Mario's self-declared yellow-and-purple clad arch-rival. He initially debuted as an antagonist, but over the years has become an anti-hero, even being playable in a few games. Wario is the protagonist of the Wario series and is playable in most of the Mario spin-off games where he is shown to be Waluigi's partner. His name is portmanteau of "warui", the Japanese word for "bad", and "Mario". Wario's favorite food is garlic, often used in gameplay to restore health when he gets defeated.
Kamek the Magikoopa (English: /kəˈmɛk, ˈkæmɪk/) is a member of the fictional Magikoopa species who is Bowser's childhood caretaker, and later in life one of his high-ranking minions. Kamek is the main antagonist of the Yoshi series, and first appeared in the 1995 Super Nintendo Entertainment System game Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island. In his various game appearances, his magic includes self-duplication, teleportation, shooting magical blasts, and changing the size of other creatures. He is often distinguished from other Magikoopas by the broom he rides on. In Japan, his species is also named Kamek, but outside Japan they are called Magikoopas.
Kamek returns in the 2009 Wii video game New Super Mario Bros. Wii and its 2012 Wii U sequel as a recurring supporting antagonist and boss character. Kamek also makes non-playable appearances in the Mario Party and Paper Mario series in various roles, and made playable appearances as an unlockable character in the 2012 Wii video game Mario Party 9 and the 2014 Nintendo 3DS video game Mario Golf: World Tour. Kamek's non-playable appearance in Mario Party 8 was controversial and caused the game to be recalled in the United Kingdom, as some of his in-game dialogue contained the word "spastic", which is considered very offensive to disabled people in the UK. Additionally, Kamek has had minor cameo appearances in the Super Smash Bros. series.
A prototype of Mario Kart 64 for the Nintendo 64 featured Kamek as one of the eight playable characters, but the character was replaced with Donkey Kong in the final game. Kamek would later become a playable character made available for the Kamek Tour in a 2021 update to the 2019 mobile game Mario Kart Tour. In 2023, he was added to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe as part of the Booster Course Pass, marking his first appearance in a console Mario Kart game.
Kamek was voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson in The Super Mario Bros. Movie, who based Kamek’s voice on Peter Lorre.
Mini Bowser, also referred to exclusively in North America as Koopa Kid and initially mistranslated as Baby Bowser, describes both an individual and a group of Bowser's minions bearing similar design elements to the latter. They appear exclusively in the Mario Party sub-series of video games, where their role is generally to hinder player's progress by stealing coins needed for progression or confronting the player in minigames.
While Mini Bowser would initially continue to rise in relevance throughout the series, becoming the plot's main antagonistic force as well as a playable character by Mario Party 5 and being the subject of a dedicated mode in Mario Party Advance, he has also become an example of Nintendo phasing out certain characters from the Super Mario franchise, with him having been replaced by the more recently introduced Bowser Jr. in newer games of the series, netting him the reputation of being "another neglected classic Nintendo character". Both the reason for this disappearance as well as his actual relation to Bowser is a subject of fan speculation, due to regional differences concerning in-game texts and manuals implying Mini Bowser to either be a child, younger version or simple henchman of Bowser.
Waluigi is a tall, thin, and mischievous man who was introduced in Mario Tennis as Wario's partner of unspecified relation. He is Luigi's black-and-purple clad arch-rival. Waluigi is often an antagonist who teams up with Wario to accomplish their schemes. He is playable in most of the Mario spin-off games, and makes several cameos within the Super Smash Bros. series. Like with Wario, his name is a portmanteau of "warui" and "Luigi".
King Boo is the king of the Boos, and is the main antagonist of the Luigi's Mansion series. He plays minor roles, occasionally playable, in various other Mario games, including the Mario Kart and Mario Party series. King Boo's first major debuted role was as the final boss of Luigi's Mansion, where he disguised himself as Bowser. He is depicted as much larger than the average Boos that appear in games after Luigi's Mansion. He dons a crown with a large ruby, and has glowing, sunken eyes in the Luigi's Mansion franchise. A similar character named Big Boo is an enemy in Super Mario World and a boss in Super Mario 64 DS. Additionally, a different character also named King Boo, known as Boss Boo in Japan, appears as a boss in Super Mario Sunshine.
Bowser Jr. (known as Koopa Jr. in Japan; voiced by Caety Sagoian), or sometimes simply Jr. or Junior, is the son of Bowser, who first appeared in the 2002 GameCube game Super Mario Sunshine. He is often depicted as the secondary antagonist throughout the Mario series. In the games, Bowser Jr. looks up to his dad, and shares his ambition to defeat Mario, and take over the world and the Mushroom Kingdom. Bowser Jr. is playable in most of the spin-off Mario games, and in Super Smash Bros. He is the main protagonist of Bowser Jr.'s Journey (2018) included in the remake of Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story.
Petey Piranha, known as Boss Pakkun in Japan, is a large, powerful Piranha Plant character. Whereas normal Piranha Plants are usually depicted growing from pipes, Petey's leaves and roots are foot-like and arm-like appendages, allowing the character to use objects such as tennis rackets and golf clubs when playable in the various Mario sports games. He can sometimes use his leaves to fly around. He debuted as the primary boss of Bianco Hills in the game Super Mario Sunshine, returning as a minor boss in New Super Mario Bros.. Similar Piranha Plant boss characters later appear in Super Mario Galaxy and its sequel. Petey Piranha made his Mario Kart debut in Mario Kart: Double Dash as a playable driver, and returns in Mario Kart Tour and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.
Fawful, known in Japan as Gerakobits, is a recurring antagonist in the Mario & Luigi series. The character is considered to be "insane", and speaks in a chaotic manner. He served as the secondary antagonist of Superstar Saga, and the main antagonist of Bowser's Inside Story. He was also the main antagonist of Bowser’s Minions, in which he brainwashed all of Bowser's minions, and became Captain Goomba’s archenemy.
He was created by Masanori Sato, who worked as the illustrator for Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga, the first game in the Mario & Luigi series. Fawful's localized Japanese name, Gerakobits, is derived from geragera, the Japanese onomatopoeia for a scornful laugh, while his English name is a pun combining the words "awful" and "guffaw". Because Fawful was not based on any existing characters in the Mario series, the Nintendo Treehouse, which is responsible for localizing games for North American audiences, had more creative freedom in writing for the character. Bill Trinen and Nate Bihldorff, both employees of the Treehouse, wrote the English dialogue for Fawful through the exchange of notes. Rather than sticking close to the Japanese script, where Fawful simply adds "Fururururu!" to the end of every line, Trinen and Bihldorff intended to make Fawful as "wacky" and "zainy" as possible in the Western release. Thus, in English versions of the games, all of Fawful's dialogue consists of broken English and word salads and his catchphrase, "I have fury!".
Fawful has received critical acclaim from both critics and fans, regarded as a favorite villain. He is also regarded for his quotes and humor, nominated for the "Most Quotable Character" award in 2009, but losing to Ellis from Left 4 Dead 2. 1UP.com's Jeremy Parish attributing the quality of Superstar Saga's comedy to him. His "I have fury!" quote was included in Nintendo Power's collection of classic quotes from Nintendo games. Another quotation, "I am the mustard of your doom!" was regarded by MTV Multiplayer writer Steven Totilo as one of the most famous lines in video games of recent years and was quoted with "uncommon frequency." GamesRadar ranked Fawful as one of the best video game villains, arguing that he was a dominant aspect of the Mario & Luigi series partly due to his quotes.