Kevin Afghani : la nouvelle voix de Mario depuis 2023

Kevin Afghani: Mario's new voice since 2023

1436 words | Reading time : 7 minute(s)

CharacterVoice actingSuper Mario Bros. Wonder

Since 2023, it is no longer Charles Martinet saying “It's-a me”. Born on November 9, 1996, Kevin Afghani took over from Charles Martinet as the official voice of Mario and Luigi, starting with Super Mario Bros. Wonder. This portrait walks through the handover, the other roles he covers — Wario and Waluigi among them — and makes clear that he is not the voice from the movie.

For nearly three decades, a single voice shouted “It's-a me, Mario!”: that of Charles Martinet. Then, in 2023, Nintendo quietly turned the page and handed gaming's most famous plumber to a new American voice actor, Kevin Afghani. A name few players knew, and which now carries one of the most iconic roles in the medium.

The same shake-up reached his fellow cast members: Samantha Kelly lent her voice to Peach for eighteen years before being replaced by Courtney Lin.

Who is this performer who arrived almost on tiptoe? Why did Nintendo choose restraint over fanfare for this handover? And which characters does Kevin Afghani actually voice? A portrait of the official successor to Mario and Luigi.

Contents

Who is Kevin Afghani?

Kevin Afghani, full name Kevin Zachary Afghani, is an American voice actor born on November 9, 1996 and based in Los Angeles. Before inheriting Mario's voice, he worked in the dubbing world without being a star: a fairly low-key profile, light-years from the spotlight that usually surrounds a character known the world over.

That is exactly what makes his path so unusual. Where many pictured a Hollywood star, Nintendo preferred a performer able to faithfully reproduce the mischievous, childlike timbre that has defined Mario for generations. The bet: deliver a sonic continuity almost invisible to the wider public, so the plumber's voice stays instantly recognisable, whoever stands behind the microphone.

Portrait of Kevin Afghani, a smiling young man in front of a wooden fence
Kevin Afghani, a Texan voice actor, takes over Mario and Luigi from 2023 onward.

Succeeding Charles Martinet

You can't talk about Kevin Afghani without mentioning the man he replaces. Charles Martinet voiced Mario for nearly thirty years, revealed to the wider public with the legendary Super Mario 64 (1996). His “Wahoo!” and his “Let's-a go!” are carved into the memory of several generations of players.

On August 21, 2023, Nintendo announced that Martinet would stop voicing Mario in the games, while keeping a strong tie to the brand: he becomes Mario ambassador, an honorary representative role. That announcement left one question hanging: who would pick up the torch? The answer came a few weeks later, with no fuss at all, through a brand-new game.

Portrait of Charles Martinet, white hair and a dark jacket
Charles Martinet lent his voice to Mario for twenty-seven years.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder: the official debut

Kevin Afghani's first official performance comes in Super Mario Bros. Wonder, released worldwide on October 20, 2023 on Nintendo Switch. It's in this platformer, praised for its creativity, that his Mario and Luigi voices are heard for the first time by millions of players.

Worth noting: Nintendo held no grand ceremony. It was on October 13, 2023, just days before release, that Kevin Afghani's name was confirmed, notably through the game's credits. No dedicated trailer, no blockbuster campaign: the company preferred to let the voice speak for itself. A choice fully in line with its wish for the smoothest handover possible.

Switch box art for Super Mario Bros. Wonder, the whole gang mid-dash
Wonder, in October 2023, is the first game where Afghani's voice is heard.

Careful: this is not the movie voice

One mix-up keeps coming back among fans, and it needs clearing up: Kevin Afghani did not voice Mario in the 2023 movie. In The Super Mario Bros. Movie, released the same year, Mario is played in the original version by actor Chris Pratt, while the French version hands the role to another actor.

Kevin Afghani's territory is therefore limited to the video games. Film and games run on completely separate castings: the movie was after star voices for its international marketing, whereas Nintendo wanted, for its games, sonic continuity with the legacy of Charles Martinet. Two Marios, two worlds, two logics.

Far more than Mario: Wario, Waluigi and the babies

Taking over Mario doesn't sum up Kevin Afghani's work. Like his predecessor, he plays a whole gallery of iconic characters from the series, depending on the game:

  • Mario and Luigi, the two plumber brothers, the heart of the franchise.
  • Wario and Waluigi, the mischievous rivals with their cartoonish voices.
  • Baby Mario and Baby Luigi, the infant versions of the heroes.

You can hear him in several recent titles, among them WarioWare: Move It!, Super Mario Party Jamboree, Mario & Luigi: Brothership or even Mario Kart World. A line-up that confirms Nintendo really has handed him the keys to the vocal cast.

A handover built to last

Nintendo's choice says a lot about its philosophy: preserving Mario's sonic identity beyond the people behind it. By picking a performer able to match the existing timbre rather than a celebrity with a signature style, the company makes sure the character crosses the decades without any break for players.

Kevin Afghani, for his part, has expressed deep respect for Charles Martinet and for the legacy he is taking on. Far from erasing his predecessor, he places himself in that continuity, with the ambition of keeping Mario alive for a new generation. His name may still be less familiar than Martinet's, but his voice already rides along with the mustachioed plumber's adventures, game after game.

Kevin Afghani at a glance

Name Kevin Afghani (Kevin Zachary Afghani)
English name Kevin Afghani
Born November 9, 1996 (United States)
Profession Voice actor
Main role Official voice of Mario and Luigi
Since 2023 (successor to Charles Martinet)
First performance Super Mario Bros. Wonder (October 20, 2023)
Other roles Wario, Waluigi, Baby Mario, Baby Luigi

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FAQ

  • Who has voiced Mario since 2023?
    It's the American voice actor Kevin Afghani, who succeeded Charles Martinet as the official voice of Mario and Luigi in Nintendo games.
  • Did Kevin Afghani voice Mario in the 2023 movie?
    No. In The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Mario is voiced in the original version by Chris Pratt. Kevin Afghani works only on the video games.
  • What is the first game voiced by Kevin Afghani?
    His first official performance is Super Mario Bros. Wonder, released worldwide on October 20, 2023 on Nintendo Switch.
  • Who voiced Mario before Kevin Afghani?
    Charles Martinet, who played Mario for nearly thirty years before becoming Mario ambassador in August 2023.
  • Which other characters does Kevin Afghani voice?
    Depending on the game, he also lends his voice to Luigi, Wario, Waluigi as well as Baby Mario and Baby Luigi.

Beyond the consoles

Cinema, television, the composers and the theme parks: what Mario has become away from the controllers.

🎬 Mario in film and culture →
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