Chris Pratt on voicing Mario in upcoming 'Super Mario Bros.' film: 'Dreams come true'

Chris Pratt joyfully reacted to his casting as Mario, telling the story of how much he used to love the video game as a kid and how this happening now is proof that "dreams come true."

"So when I was a kid, I lived in Lake Stevens, Washington, and there was this coin-operated laundromat near my house, and it had Super Mario Bros.—the original arcade game. Oh, I loved that game. I never had a quarter, it felt like. I'd either steal them from the wishing well [laughs]. That's wild! Just dawned on me right now: the quarter I stole out of the wishing well to play Super Mario Bros. has come true that I get to be the voice of Mario. But I clearly stole someone else's wish, so just waiting for that row of karma dominoes to come crashing down on me.

"But as it is right now, it's-a-me, a-Mario. ... I'm really excited to announce that I'm gonna be the voice of that video game that I dreamed about playing as a kid. Dreams come true."

There are plenty of people, however, who aren't excited that Pratt was selected to voice the famous Italian character.

"We are collaborating with Chris and his experienced team to not just create a character licensed film, but a new piece of entertainment which brings Super Mario Bros. to life on the screen, and allows everyone to enjoy whether or not they know about the game," said Shigeru Miyamoto, Nintendo's representative director and fellow, said in a statement, per Deadline. "The production so far is constructive and going very well, and both parties are learning a lot from each other. We humbly ask that fans wait just a little longer for the premiere, and we hope they look forward to seeing the unique characters from Super Mario Bros. on the big screen."

Charles Martinet has voiced Mario and several other characters throughout the video game franchise since the early 1990s.