Nintendo and Illumination have a third animated film in the pipeline, with Universal quietly slotting an untitled Nintendo collaboration into its theatrical calendar for April 12, 2028 — a date that points squarely at a Donkey Kong feature and signals the studio’s ambition to build a full-scale gaming franchise on the big screen.
The listing appeared on Universal’s Spanish website following an update on April 23, described only as an “untitled Illumination/Nintendo event film” under the animation category. No official title, plot, or cast has been confirmed, but the breadcrumb trail leading to Donkey Kong is difficult to ignore.
In May 2025, Nintendo Studios LLC and Universal Pictures jointly filed a copyright with the US Copyright Office for a project titled “Untitled Donkey Kong Project; Motion Picture” — a filing that mirrors the process used before The Super Mario Bros. Movie. Reports of a Donkey Kong spinoff had circulated as far back as November 2021, when sources indicated Illumination was developing the project with Seth Rogen set to reprise his role as the character. Rogen later said publicly that the Donkey Kong Country games created “a lot of opportunity” for a standalone film.
The 2028 date arrives with notable speed. The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, which released three years after its 2023 predecessor, is already on course to gross over $1 billion at the global box office, pushing the combined haul of the two Mario films past $2 billion. Scheduling a third film just two years after the Galaxy Movie suggests Universal sees clear runway to accelerate, rather than pace, its Nintendo releases.
Fans have also pointed to Nintendo’s heavy recent investment in Donkey Kong more broadly — the character received a redesigned look in Donkey Kong Bananza, a Switch 2 game, and holds a prominent presence at Super Nintendo World theme parks.
The 2028 film sits on Universal’s schedule between Fast Forever and a new Mummy movie, placed in the April window that the studio has used successfully for both previous Nintendo releases. Whether the film centers on Donkey Kong or pivots to an entirely different Nintendo property, the slot alone confirms the partnership between the two companies has matured into a long-term franchise strategy — with a live-action Legend of Zelda film from director Wes Ball also expected in 2027.
