In The last of us, the Cordyceps fungus has decimated humanity, infecting normal humans and transforming them into monstrous Clickers. The transformation is already quite terrifying and used to be Teen Titans GO! art director Dan Hipp takes it a step further and shows off a Mushroom Kingdom version of the virus. In an artwork shared on Hipp’s Twitter account, Mario, ally Toad, has been infected, causing numerous 1-Up Mushrooms to sprout from his head. It’s a bizarre look, but it does look cool!

The Mariox The last of us mash-up can be found in Hipp’s Tweet embedded below.

Mushroom #The last of us pic.twitter.com/cEO2uonlVp

— Dan Hipp (@MISTERHIPP) February 3, 2023

Interestingly enough, Hipp isn’t alone in coming up with ways to combine the world of The last of us with Super Mario! Last night’s episode of Saturday Night Live was hosted by Pedro Pascal, the actor who plays Joel Miller in the HBO series. On SNL, Pascal appeared in a skit that combined the characters of the Super Mario franchise with the darker tone of The last of us. In the sketch, Pascal plays Mario, as he tries to protect Princess Peach from Bowser and his minions. Instead of dodging Clickers, the heroes are chased by giant Goombas, which actually look pretty scary in this context! Readers who missed last night’s skit can watch it here.

While certainly unusual, it’s not too surprising to see Mario and The last of us getting multiple mashups at this point; after all, both games form the basis for two major Hollywood adaptations! The last of us has seen tremendous interest from viewers on HBO, while The Super Mario Bros. movie is arguably one of the most highly anticipated video game adaptations ever. The last of us is currently airing on Sunday evenings but interested in The Super Mario Bros. movie wait a little longer, because the animated film will only be released in theaters on April 7.

Are you excited for The Super Mario Bros. movie? What do you think of this mash up art? Let us know in the comments or share your thoughts directly on Twitter and on Hive at @Marcdachamp to talk about all things gaming!