I’m a theme park girlie, and one of the best attractions at Epic Universe is Super Nintendo World. If you haven’t been, the theming is absolutely insane, the Power Up Bands are not overrated, and if you are a fan of Nintendo in general, there are Easter eggs as far as the eye can see. One of my favorites is becoming more relevant thanks to a little move coming out soon called The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.
The Super Fun Epic Universe Easter Egg You May Not Have Noticed
Super Nintendo World is chock full of Super Mario references. Some of these are super insider Easter eggs, such as the 8-bit Mario coin that gets flipped at the entrance to the Epic Portal or the many Bowser’s challenge nods, including the fun signed Miyamoto portrait. I could go on all day about these, but my personal favorite Easter egg just so happens to be the hidden Pikmin in the park.
There’s apparently 30 of them sprinkled about (and I haven’t caught them all yet), but the best of the best are the Pikmin who have escaped Super Nintendo World and can be found within and on the outside of the Nintendo Super Star Store. The Pikmin were around in other versions of Super Nintendo World before Epic Universe opened, but the timing of the opening of the Universal Orlando park makes the inclusion of these little guys so much better.
When I attended the opening of Epic Universe, the Pikmin were spotted pretty quickly. Brie Larson was also one of the celebrities in attendance for the event. At the time, these felt like cute Easter eggs. The Pikmin are popular, and as a gamer herself, Larson is a notable actress in the gaming space, so her attendance felt fitting. There was more to it than that, though.
It’s All Coming Full Circle Now The Super Mario Galaxy Movie Is Coming Out
The thought put into all of this is obviously way more amazing now the movie's roles and cameos have been announced, and more references have been revealed in the Super Mario Galaxy Movie trailer. Brie Larson held onto the secret for months, but we now know she is playing Rosalina in the upcoming 2026 movie. The Pikmin, too, were seen in a promotional video for the Nintendo-based Universal movie and appear like they will at least have a nod or some relevance when the movie comes out. The whole thing has just felt like such a long play from Universal, as the theme parks tie in with the movies and vice versa. It's been cool to witness as a fan.
There’s been a wave of Super Mario Galaxy Movie news over the past few days as Chris Pratt, Jack Black and co. have gone full method-dressing on the red carpet. While we’ve loved the over-the-top looks, there’s also been news churned out about more appearances from a-listers, with Glen Powell spilling the tea about his own role a couple of days ago.
I honestly can’t wait for this one, and hopefully for the day more Nintendo franchise characters make their way into Epic Universe. Though I’ll never complain about the long line for Toad.
