Charles Martinet, longtime voice of the beloved Mario from Super Mario Bros., is stepping away from the role after nearly 30 years.

In an announcement, Nintendo said Martinet will become a Mario ambassador instead, “sharing the joy of Mario” at international events.

The voice actor thanked his fans for their decades of support in a brief post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

My new Adventure begins! You are all Numba One in my heart! #woohoo !!!!!!! https://t.co/3YWYewlnXt

— Charles Martinet (@CharlesMartinet) August 21, 2023

According to Martinet’s version of events, he “crashed” an audition Nintendo was holding for potential Marios in the early ’90s (Mario and Luigi did not speak in early Super Mario Bros. games).

A casting director told him the character’s background and name and asked for a voice, prompting Martinet to begin spouting off instructions on how to make a pizza in Mario’s Italian-flecked falsetto.

His off-the-cuff performance impressed Mario creator  Shigeru Miyamoto and Martinet first voiced Mario in a 1994 CD-ROM game called “Mario Teaches Typing.”

He then went on to feature in dozens of über-popular games, from the groundbreaking “Super Mario 64” in 1996, to the mega-hit “Mario Kart Wii” in 2008 and 2021’s “Mario Party Superstars.”