The Super Mario Bros. Movie poster

Is The Super Mario Bros. Movie OK for a 6 Year Old?

The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) · the answer, age by age

Written by FilmScout, reviewed by Ben Fedyniak · Updated September 15, 2026

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29 MILD ScoutScore

For most 6 year olds, The Super Mario Bros. Movie is a yes at video-game volume. It scores 29 on the ScoutScore, in the Mild tier, and nearly all of it is cartoon combat: a gladiatorial fight with Donkey Kong, a kart chase modeled on the games, a forced wedding with prisoners threatened over lava. The one scene that breaks from slapstick is a one-sided beatdown late in Brooklyn, where the tone turns genuinely rough for about a minute before the finale resets it.

A ScoutScore is a living number. We re-check movies against the source and raise or lower it when we find something the first pass missed, so a score you see today can differ from one you saw last month.

Age by age

Under 6 DEPENDS

Leaning yes for kids who know the games. Kamek torturing Toad and the wedding sacrifice are the two darker beats, and the late beatdown of Mario is more intense than anything before it, though brief.

Ages 6 to 8 LIKELY FINE

The target. The references land, the kart chase and arena fight are pure fun, and the one rough scene passes quickly into the triumphant ending.

Ages 9 to 11 LIKELY FINE

Easy, and they will catch the game references the adults miss.

Ages 12 and up LIKELY FINE

Nostalgia more than a scare. Little to manage.

By the year

The same verdicts, by the exact age you are asking about.

4 year oldDEPENDSLeaning yes for kids who know the games.
5 year oldDEPENDSLeaning yes for kids who know the games.
6 year oldLIKELY FINEThe target.
7 year oldLIKELY FINEThe target.
8 year oldLIKELY FINEThe target.
9 year oldLIKELY FINEEasy, and they will catch the game references the adults miss.
10 year oldLIKELY FINEEasy, and they will catch the game references the adults miss.
11 year oldLIKELY FINEEasy, and they will catch the game references the adults miss.
12 year oldLIKELY FINENostalgia more than a scare.
13 year oldLIKELY FINENostalgia more than a scare.

Where the big moments land

The scenes below are the torture-coded wedding sequence and the one moment the movie's tone turns serious. That stretch in the middle is the reason for the score.

1:05:30Heads upKamek tortures Toad to coerce Peach
1:08:57CautionWedding ceremony and prisoners lowered toward lava
1:16:27CautionBowser beats Mario down in Brooklyn

These three are a sample. The full scene map, and live alerts that arrive before each scene while you watch, are in the FilmScout app.

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Every scene above is timed. The FilmScout app listens to the movie and taps you 30 seconds before each one, so you can skip it, mute it, or talk it through. Free to start on iPhone.

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The bottom line

Bowser's⁠ cruelty is played for laughs until the Brooklyn beatdown turns it real for one long minute. Most 6 year olds handle the kart chases and the arena fight fine; be ready to explain why the tone suddenly changes⁠.

Content map

How the scenes we flagged in this movie divide up by kind. These are shares of what was flagged, not a level, and not a promise about anything we did not flag: a movie with very little flagged content can still be 80% one kind.

Flagged mostly for violence and action.

Scary and dark25%
Violence and action70%
Themesnone flagged
Sexual contentnone flagged
Substancesnone flagged
Language5%
All flagged content100%

Direction is the kind of content flagged. Reach is the ScoutScore, which is how much there is: green at the centre, yellow, orange, then red at the dotted line, which is 100. The scale has no ceiling, so a shape can cross it.

Scout every scene in the app.
The Super Mario Bros. Movie mapped moment by moment, with alerts that follow along while you watch.

Full scene report for The Super Mario Bros. Movie

More age guides

Is Monsters Inc OK for a 4 year old?Is Aladdin OK for a 5 year old?Is Shrek OK for a 6 year old?Is Finding Nemo OK for a 4 year old?Is Kung Fu Panda 4 OK for a 5 year old?Is Lilo and Stitch OK for a 5 year old?

Every age guide

Quoting this page? Writers, bloggers, and fellow parents are welcome to quote these verdicts with credit to FilmScout and a link back here. Scores change as movies are rescored, so please link rather than hardcode a number. Boilerplate and assets are in the press kit.
ScoutScores are FilmScout's own scene by scene analysis and change as the catalog is rescored. These verdicts describe how movies tend to land by age. You know your family; the final call is always yours. FilmScout is independent and is not affiliated with, licensed by, or endorsed by any studio or ratings board.

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