McDonald's Happy Meal Promotion Ties 12 Collectible Toys to Super Mario Galaxy Movie

Twelve collectible keychains featuring characters from The Super Mario Galaxy Movie will land in Happy Meals at participating U.S. McDonald's locations starting March 26, timed to arrive five days ahead of the film's April 1 theatrical premiere.

Each toy functions as a keychain on a posable clip and comes with a personalized display stand set against a different background. The character lineup includes Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Toad, Rosalina, Bowser, Bowser Jr., Luma, and Birdo, with Frog Suit variants of both Mario and Luigi also confirmed across promotional materials. Some of the 12 designs are repeat characters in different forms that reference elements from the Nintendo games rather than entirely new figures.

The Happy Meal box itself adds a digital layer: scanning a QR code on the packaging unlocks content at HappyMeal.com, including puzzles and games tied to the movie's storyline and what McDonald's describes as "a few new faces from The Super Mario Galaxy Movie universe."

The U.S. rollout is explicitly limited-time, though McDonald's has not publicized an end date. Internationally, the promotion is already live in Brazil, where it goes further than a toy swap. Brazilian locations are offering Mario-themed packaging on both the Big Mac and McNuggets adult meal boxes, three new sauces, a new sundae, and a new Sprite flavor alongside the keychain toys.

This marks the second time McDonald's has built a Happy Meal campaign around a Mario film. A comparable promotion accompanied The Super Mario Bros. Movie in 2023, and the current campaign follows the same cross-promotional playbook, with Universal Studios coordinating the McDonald's tie-in as part of a broader marketing push for the sequel.

For crew at participating locations, the March 26 start date means the promotional inventory should be in place before the weekend rush, with customer demand likely to spike around the April 1 opening. McDonald's has not confirmed publicly how long the 12-toy rotation will remain available or whether all U.S. locations are participating.