Following a recent convention appearance that sparked confusion online, Charles Martinet, the iconic voice of Mario for nearly three decades, has clarified his approach to performing in-character for fans—and his reasoning behind it.
Now officially recognized by Nintendo as a Mario Ambassador, Martinet is adored for enthusiastically delivering his famous Mario voices when greeting supporters in person. However, a recent social media post by YouTuber Ricky Berwick raised concerns that Nintendo had limited what Martinet could perform—until he personally stepped in to provide an explanation.
Martinet’s appearance earlier this month at Phoenix Fan Fusion 2025 in Phoenix, Arizona, prompted a social media statement from Berwick—who boasts 6.25 million YouTube subscribers and 14.1 million TikTok followers—claiming the legendary voice actor "wasn't even allowed to do the voice of Mario or any of his iconic character's voices" during the meetup. "It's a f**king shame," Berwick added.
Berwick’s post quickly gained traction online, emerging just hours after news broke that Martinet’s former colleague Samantha Kelly had been replaced as the voice of Princess Peach and Toad. Kelly reportedly learned about the replacement on the same day the Nintendo Switch 2 launch title Mario Kart World was released without her involvement.
Nintendo officially retired Martinet from the role back in 2022, though they honored the actor with a farewell video featuring Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto and assured fans Martinet would continue collaborating with Nintendo as the Mario Ambassador. Martinet later admitted he wasn’t entirely sure what the title entailed, but he has remained active with numerous convention appearances in the years since.
In response to Berwick’s claims, Martinet has clarified that the issue relates to performing improvised dialogue using his former Nintendo characters—not only Mario, but also Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Baby Mario, Baby Luigi, and others.
"Oh Ricky, I do the voice for every fan I meet," Martinet replied. "I just don't improvise non-Mario phrases or dialogue."
He went on to explain that this was his personal choice, stemming from his desire not to have Nintendo’s characters say anything that isn’t already part of the company’s official games.
"That's my choice to be sure," Martinet continued. "I always maintain the integrity of the character. But come and visit me at any Comic Con or fan expo and you'll hear super Mario for sure! #woohoo"
In Nintendo video games, the voice of Mario is now provided by Kevin Afghani—while Chris Pratt voices the character in The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which is set to receive a sequel next year.
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