The MCU is yesterday\u2019s news. The NCU, or Nintendo Cinematic Universe, is just beginning.<\/span><\/p>\n Ever since Robert Downey Jr. tinkered with that iron suit back in 2008, Marvel movies have dominated Hollywood. \u201cIron Man\u201d changed the movie-making landscape. In recent years, however, superhero romps no longer light up the box office like they once did.<\/span><\/p>\n Even \u201cSuperman\u201d <\/span>struggled to turn a profit last year.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n Meanwhile, \u201cThe Super Mario Galaxy Movie\u201d spun from Nintendo\u2019s beloved video game franchise, could <\/span>make $180 million (or more) in its opening weekend.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n Video game movies are having a moment, and Hollywood won\u2019t be the same moving forward.<\/span><\/p>\n Tomohiro Ohsumi\/Getty Images for Universal Pictures, Nintendo and Illumination<\/p>\n<\/div>\n The superhero film genre may have run its course organically, but Hollywood hastened its decline. The genre peaked with 2019\u2019s \u201cAvengers: Endgame,\u201d which made an astonishing $2.8 billion worldwide.<\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s been downhill ever since, with MCU gatekeepers injecting girlbossery and DEI platitudes into the saga. That helped crush \u201cThe Marvels\u201d and \u201cEternals,\u201d while slowing the MCU\u2019s winning streak.<\/span><\/p>\n Even respectable entries like last year\u2019s \u201cThunderbolts\u201d and \u201cThe Fantastic Four: First Steps\u201d proved financially underwhelming, at least by previous standards.<\/span><\/p>\n So Hollywood needed another source of IP (Intellectual Property) gold. Why not video games? Well, Hollywood had tried that repeatedly, often with ghastly results.<\/span><\/p>\n Think 1993\u2019s \u201cSuper Mario Bros.,\u201d a colossal misfire starring John Leguizamo and Bob Hoskins, 1999\u2019s \u201cWing Commander\u201d bust, and even 2005\u2019s \u201cDoom\u201d with Dwayne Johnson.<\/span><\/p>\n Andreas Rentz\/Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n More clunkers? The 2005 catastrophe \u201cAlone in the Dark\u201d and 2003\u2019s \u201cHouse of the Dead,\u201d both courtesy of hack auteur Uwe Boll.<\/span><\/p>\n Something was missing, be it A-list actors, competent directors, or the kind of FX to pull off the visually impossible.<\/span><\/p>\n Slowly, Hollywood began treating video game adaptations with a critical element \u2014 respect. The 2018 film \u201cRampage\u201d wasn\u2019t a sensation, but by then Johnson was a star attraction, and the film\u2019s budget gave it the gravitas the source material required.<\/span><\/p>\n The 2021 comedy \u201cFree Guy\u201d cast likable Ryan Reynolds as an NPC (non-player character) in way over his head. The film packed big laughs with video game elements to the tune of $331 million worldwide.<\/span><\/p>\n Reynolds may be gently progressive off-screen, but he knows how to put on a show without pushing Heartland viewers away. Few actors can match his marketing savvy.<\/span><\/p>\n The \u201cSonic the Hedgehog\u201d films, based on the Sega speedster, have all made serious coin, aided by slick video game elements and the unchecked Id of star Jim Carrey.<\/span><\/p>\n Rich Fury\/WireImage via Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Another secret to video game movies\u2019 recent success? Respecting the audience. These films haven\u2019t pushed a progressive agenda on unsuspecting audiences. No lectures, unnecessary woke asides, or clunky identity politics casting.<\/span><\/p>\n Even <\/span>Snoop Dogg can watch these mostly PG-friendly films<\/span><\/a> with his grandson.<\/span><\/p>\n The new wave of video game-inspired films, while far from artistically relevant, cater to fans via Easter Eggs and other source material nods. And, when the fans speak, they listen.<\/span><\/p>\n Recall the outrage over the character design shown in the initial \u201cSonic the Hedgehog\u201d teaser from 2019. <\/span>Fans mocked the FX<\/span><\/a> behind the titular hero, and the studio quickly addressed the matter by tweaking the film.<\/span><\/p>\n That probably cost a pretty penny, and it pushed the release date forward several months. The results spoke for themselves. The film earned $148 million in the U.S. alone and sparked a new franchise.<\/span><\/p>\n A fourth \u201cSonic\u201d film will <\/span>debut next year<\/span><\/a>, adding A-lister Kristen Bell to the saga (her voice, to be precise).<\/span><\/p>\n Video game adaptations were suddenly vital, but they still couldn\u2019t approach MCU-like box office grosses. Then along came \u201cThe Super Mario Bros. Movie\u201d in 2023. That animated romp rang up $1.3 billion at global theaters, cementing video game movies as the new Hollywood drug.<\/span><\/p>\n The industry couldn\u2019t get enough, and that was before \u201cA Minecraft Movie\u201d debuted two years later. That film, starring Jack Black and Jason Momoa, earned $424 million stateside and nearly $1 billion globally.<\/span><\/p>\n A sequel is in the works<\/span><\/a>. Of course.<\/span><\/p>\n Courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures. Copyright 2025 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. IMDB.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n That film\u2019s \u201c<\/span>chicken jockey<\/span><\/a>\u201d sequence sparked a viral video sensation. Not only were Gen Alpha types seeing the film in theaters, but they went cartoonishly wild during that farcical moment.<\/span><\/p>\n Suddenly, it was cool to be in a theater again. Hollywood is now paying full attention to a competing media landscape, and many more video game adaptations are on the way. This May brings us \u201cMortal Kombat II,\u201d while a \u201cResident Evil\u201d reboot by \u201cWeapons\u201d director Zach Cregger is coming in September.<\/span><\/p>\n Bigger titles abound in 2027, including \u201cThe Legend of Zelda,\u201d \u201cCall of Duty,\u201d and \u201cElden Ring.\u201d Any one could spark a new film franchise. Maybe all three will do just that.<\/span><\/p>\n The potential seems endless, at least for now. The same once could be said for superhero movies given the endless amount of source material, but the MCU is so desperate for a cultural reboot that it reunited virtually every hero under the sun for December\u2019s \u201cAvengers: Doomsday.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Can that film light a fire under the Men in Tights genre anew? Or have video games taken the box office crown and won\u2019t give it back?<\/span><\/p>\n Movies are a natural fit for video game adaptations, but the small screen is also seeing a benefit. Hit shows like HBO Max\u2019s \u201cThe Last of Us\u201d and Prime Video\u2019s \u201cFallout\u201d show how games can also inspire TV sensations.<\/span><\/p>\n The video game manufacturers couldn\u2019t be happier about the Hollywood synergy. It\u2019s boosting both <\/span>game awareness and sales<\/span><\/a>, meaning these companies will gladly sell the film and TV rights to their properties \u2026 for the right price.<\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s one Hollywood studios will gladly pay.<\/span><\/p>\n * *<\/p>\n Christian Toto is an award-winning journalist, movie critic, and editor of\u00a0HollywoodInToto.com<\/a>. He previously served as associate editor with Breitbart News\u2019 Big Hollywood. Follow him at\u00a0HollywoodInToto.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"KYOTO,](\"https:\/\/dw-wp-production.imgix.net\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2268776924-864x576.jpg\")
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