In an era where even dark Disney titles like The Hunchback of Notre Dame were given G ratings, major American movie studios just weren’t interested in animated features whose target demos were older than families.

Source: https://collider.com/the-super-mario-bros-movie-animated-video-game-adaptations/

This potential new movie held extra significance because it had the potential to strengthen Aardman’s relationship with an American movie studio giant.

Source: https://collider.com/aardman-tortoise-and-the-hare-movie/