You probably think of the high-pitched, bubbly voice of Anya Taylor-Joy or the long-standing tenure of Samantha Kelly when you ask who played Princess Peach. It’s a fair assumption. But the reality is a lot messier. Nintendo didn't always have a "voice cast" in the way we think of it today. In the early days, Peach—or Princess Toadstool, if you’re old enough to remember the NES instruction manuals—was basically a collection of pixels and a silent scream for help.
She wasn't always the spunky, bike-riding monarch who holds her own in Super Smash Bros.
The history of the actors behind the pink dress is a strange journey through early 80s anime, obscure educational toys, and a 16-year stint that defined a generation. It’s also a story about how Nintendo treats its talent. Unlike Hollywood, where a voice is a brand, Nintendo often kept their actors in the shadows for decades.
The Forgotten Origins of Peach’s Voice
Before the Nintendo 64 changed everything, Peach actually had a voice in Japan. Most people forget the 1986 animated film, Super Mario Bros.: Peach-Hime Kyushutsu Dai Sakusen! (The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach!). In this bizarre fever dream of a movie, Mami Yamase provided the voice. Yamase wasn't a career voice actress; she was a J-pop idol. This set a precedent for Peach being portrayed as a delicate, classic "damsel," which is a far cry from the modern version who smacks Bowser with a frying pan.
Then things got weird in the West.
Have you ever heard of the Miracle Piano Teaching System? It was an expensive peripheral for the NES and SNES. Kathy Pilon voiced Peach for that specific project. It’s a deep-cut piece of trivia, but it proves that Nintendo was experimenting with what the characters should sound like long before Super Mario 64 hit the shelves. During the Super Mario Bros. Super Show!—the live-action/cartoon hybrid from the late 80s—Jeannie Elias took the reins. She gave Peach (Toadstool) a more "American teen" vibe, which fit the Saturday morning cartoon aesthetic. Tracey Moore followed her in the subsequent cartoons based on Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World.
The Leslie Swan Era and the N64 Revolution
When Super Mario 64 launched in 1996, it changed the DNA of the franchise. It also introduced the world to the "real" voice of the characters. While Charles Martinet became the definitive Mario, Leslie Swan became the definitive Peach for that era.
Swan wasn't even an actress by trade.
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She was actually a senior editor at Nintendo Power magazine. Honestly, it’s one of those "right place, right time" stories that only happens in the gaming industry. She was working on the English localization for the game, and Nintendo needed someone to record the lines. She stepped into the booth and delivered the iconic, "Dear Mario, please come to the castle. I've baked a cake for you." It was soft, regal, and slightly motherly.
Swan didn't just voice her in the 64-bit era; she returned for Super Mario Circuit and even some later titles like Super Mario Brooklyn. Her take on the character was grounded. There was no screeching. It was a refined version of royalty that matched the revolutionary 3D graphics of the time. However, as Nintendo moved toward the GameCube, they wanted something more energetic. Something... higher.
Jen Taylor and the Transition to Modernity
Enter Jen Taylor. If that name sounds familiar, it’s because she is also the voice of Cortana in the Halo series. Talk about range.
Taylor started voicing Peach in 1999 with Mario Golf and stayed through most of the early 2000s, including Luigi’s Mansion and Super Mario Sunshine. This was the era where Peach started to sound more like a "character" and less like a narrator. The pitch went up. The "sweetness" was turned up to eleven. Taylor also voiced Daisy and Toad during this period, which is why those three characters often had a similar tonal quality in the GameCube era.
It’s worth noting that Nicole Mills had a very brief stint in the mid-2000s, specifically in Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time. But Nintendo's casting has always been a bit fluid. They often used whoever was available in the Seattle-area acting pool for their US-based recordings until they finally settled on a long-term solution.
The Samantha Kelly Reign: 2007 to 2023
If you’ve played a Mario game in the last fifteen years, you know Samantha Kelly. She is the longest-serving actor to have played Princess Peach. Starting with Mario Party 8 and Super Mario Galaxy in 2007, Kelly defined the character’s modern persona.
Kelly’s Peach is distinctive. It’s incredibly high-pitched—almost operatic at times.
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When people think of Peach saying "Peachy!" or "Oh, did I win?", they are hearing Samantha Kelly. She brought a level of consistency that the franchise lacked for its first twenty years. Kelly managed to balance the "helpless" trope with the emerging "action hero" Peach we see in games like Super Princess Peach on the DS.
Interestingly, Kelly also voices Toad. If you listen closely to Toad’s raspy, frantic shouting and Peach’s airy lilt, it’s hard to believe they come from the same throat. That’s the magic of professional voice work. Kelly remained the gold standard until the seismic shift that occurred with the 2023 movie and the subsequent "refresh" of the Mario vocal cast.
The Big Screen and the New Guard
The casting of Anya Taylor-Joy in The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023) caused quite a stir. For the first time, Peach wasn't just a voice in a game; she was a cinematic protagonist. Taylor-Joy didn't try to imitate Samantha Kelly’s high-frequency squeaks. Instead, she gave the Princess a lower, more authoritative register.
This reflected the movie's portrayal of Peach as a warrior-leader rather than a kidnapping victim.
Many fans were worried that the game's identity was being lost to "stunt casting." But Taylor-Joy’s performance was widely praised for giving the character more dimensions. She felt like a person, not just a trope.
Kevin Afghani and the "Wonder" Era
In 2023, the Mario world was rocked when Charles Martinet announced his retirement from voicing Mario and Luigi. This led to a complete overhaul. While Samantha Kelly had been the voice for so long, Nintendo began transitioning to new talent to match the "fresh" feel of Super Mario Bros. Wonder.
For Super Mario Bros. Wonder and the Princess Peach: Showtime! game, a new era began. While Samantha Kelly's legacy is secure, the "Showtime" era represents a shift in how Peach is marketed. She’s now the center of her own universe, requiring an actress who can handle a massive range of "transformations"—from swordfighter to pastry chef to detective.
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Why the Voice Actually Matters for SEO and Fans
You might wonder why anyone cares who played Princess Peach so much that they'd look it up. It’s about more than just trivia. The voice of Peach acts as a barometer for how Nintendo views women in gaming.
- The 80s/90s: Silent or soft-spoken. Peach was a prize to be won.
- The 2000s: High-pitched and "cute." Peach was a playable but often stereotyped character.
- The 2020s: Capable, authoritative, and vocally diverse.
When you look at the career of someone like Samantha Kelly, you see the backbone of Nintendo’s brand identity. When that voice changes, the "feel" of the game changes.
Tracking the Timeline
If you're trying to keep everyone straight, here is the simplified lineage of the main actors:
Mami Yamase (1986): The anime original.
Jeannie Elias/Tracey Moore (1989–1991): The cartoon era.
Leslie Swan (1996–2000s): The 64-bit pioneer and Nintendo Power editor.
Jen Taylor (1999–2005): The bridge to the modern era.
Samantha Kelly (2007–2023): The longest-running and most recognizable voice.
Anya Taylor-Joy (2023): The Hollywood blockbuster version.
What Most People Get Wrong
A common misconception is that the same person has voiced Peach since the beginning. Because her "vibe" is so consistent, people assume it's one person. It's not. Another myth is that the voice actors are just "random people" at Nintendo. While that was true for Leslie Swan, modern voice acting for Nintendo is a high-stakes professional environment.
The transition from Samantha Kelly to the current era wasn't a firing; it was an evolution. Nintendo is notorious for keeping their internal processes secret, but the shift seems to be about unifying the character’s voice across movies, theme parks, and games.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Collectors
If you're a fan of the talent behind the screen, there are a few things you can do to appreciate this history more deeply:
- Check the Credits: Don't just skip them. Look for names like Samantha Kelly or Kevin Afghani in newer titles. It’s the only way to confirm who is currently behind the mic, as Nintendo rarely does big press releases for voice cast changes.
- Watch the 1986 Movie: It’s available on various archive sites. It is a wild look at how Peach was "supposed" to be before the games really established her personality.
- Play Princess Peach: Showtime!: This game is the best showcase of the character's vocal range. You get to hear the actress (Samantha Kelly's final major outing/transition) navigate completely different personalities within one game.
- Follow the Actors: Many of these women, like Jen Taylor, attend conventions. They often have incredible stories about the "secrecy" of working with Nintendo, where they sometimes didn't even know what game they were recording for.
Ultimately, who played Princess Peach isn't just one person. It's a relay race. Each actress took the baton and ran with it, slowly turning a pixelated damsel into one of the most powerful and recognizable icons in entertainment history. Whether you prefer the soft-spoken Leslie Swan or the energetic Samantha Kelly, the character’s voice is a vital part of the Mushroom Kingdom's magic.
To stay updated on the latest casting for future Mario titles, keep an eye on the official Nintendo "Direct" presentations. These are typically where the company subtly reveals new character directions. If you're interested in the technical side, researching the localization teams at Nintendo Treehouse provides the best context for how these voices are chosen and directed for a global audience.