No, Super Mario's current actor hasn't secretly been narrating any Nintendo Directs, despite the "weird narrative online" speculating otherwise

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4. Super Mario Bros. Wonder

No, Super Mario's current actor hasn't secretly been narrating any Nintendo Directs, despite the "weird narrative online" speculating otherwise News By Kaan Serin published 15 January 2026

Super Mario Bros. Wonder was really, really Kevin Afghani's first Nintendo project

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Super Mario's current voice actor Kevin Afghani has set the record straight and debunked an odd online myth – no, he isn't and has seemingly never been the enthusiastic voice behind Nintendo Directs.

Ever since he stepped into the boots of the evergreen plumber in Super Mario Bros. Wonder, taking over from the iconic Charles Martinet after more than three decades, there's been recurring fan chatter that says Afghani was also secretly the guy who would exuberantly narrate Nintendo Directs (the publisher's marketing-stuffed showcases).

The online speculation became so pervasive, even Microsoft Bing falsely corroborated the rumor while I was researching this story. (Don't trust the AI that automatically spams you answers whenever you search things up online, kids.)

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Either way, Afghani finally put the rumors to bed in a new interview with USA Today. "I'll give you one," he says when asked if there's anything – anything – he'd like to talk about. "I was never in Nintendo Direct. There's this weird narrative online I was in Nintendo Directs, I narrated Nintendo Directs. I never worked for Nintendo before being Mario."

Elsewhere, the actor shared that he has "unbelievable respect" for Super Mario's OG voice Charles Martinet and, even though Afghani's usually a cheery lad, he "can't help but get teary-eyed" while talking about his love for the joyous platformer series.

Nintendo president reportedly teases new games for popular series are in development, which I hope means we're getting a 3D Mario title for Switch 2 sooner rather than later

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Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. CATEGORIES Nintendo Switch 2 Nintendo Switch Platforms Nintendo Kaan SerinFreelance contributor

Kaan freelances for various websites including Rock Paper Shotgun, Eurogamer, and this one, Gamesradar. He particularly enjoys writing about spooky indies, throwback RPGs, and anything that's vaguely silly. Also has an English Literature and Film Studies degree that he'll soon forget.

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