John Leguizamo
John Alberto Leguizamo Peláez (born July 22, 1964) is a Colombian-born American actor, comedian, producer, and writer who rose to fame for portraying Mario's brother, Luigi, in the live-action Super Mario Bros. film, which was released in 1993. Other notable roles include Benny Blanco in Carlito's Way, Sid the Sloth in the Ice Age franchise, the narrator of The Brothers García, and Bruno Madrigal in Encanto.
In his official autobiography, Leguizamo revealed that, much like various fellow actors participating in the film, he largely hated working on the movie. However his feelings for the movie are not completely negative. In 2013, to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Super Mario Bros. film, Leguizamo released a video discussing the film and its legacy. He said that while the movie had its mistakes, he enjoyed working with Bob Hoskins and the other actors, and considered the film and its crew to be pioneers in the video game movie genre. He also revealed that in retrospect, he is proud of Super Mario Bros., and is glad that some people still appreciate and enjoy the movie even twenty years after its release.
In an Instagram post on September 27, 2021, Leguizamo affirmed his support for the Mario film co-produced by Illumination following the casting announcement.[1]
References
- ^ @johnleguizamo (September 27, 2021). "So glad #superMariobros is getting a reboot! Obviously it’s iconic enuff. But too bad they went all white! No Latinx in the leads! Groundbreaking color-blind casting in original! Plus I’m the only one who knows how to make this movie work script wise!" Instagram. Retrieved September 28, 2021.
