Forget Fox, we can't stop thinking about the Metroid Easter egg you may have missed in The Super Mario Galaxy Movie

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie is jam-packed with Easter eggs, from Nintendo 64 nods to deep-cut pulls from the plumber's video game past.

On top of that, Glen Powell's Fox McCloud flies onto the scene from the Star Fox series and factors into the Mario movie sequel's plot in a significant way.

But prior to meeting the Arwing pilot in the Gateway Galaxy, Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy) and Toad (Keegan-Michael Key) are busy looking for anyone who can help them save Rosalina.

In the landing bay, however, you can see several ships – including Samus Aran's gunship that players would be most familiar with from their time on Zebes during the events of Super Metroid.

In truth, even we didn't catch this the first time around but, yes, the Metroid ship is just over Toad's left shoulder in one moment. It's literally on-screen for a split-second, so repeated viewings might be required.

Other eagle-eyed fans on Reddit believe they have spotted Captain Falcon's Blue Falcon ship from the F-Zero series, which would be a rare spotlight for a racing series Nintendo has largely left in neutral since its '90s and early '00s heyday.

Despite the crowded scene of Nintendo fan favorites in The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, don't expect a Super Smash Bros.-style crossover anytime soon.

Speaking to Polygon, Mario creator and Mario Galaxy Movie executive producer Shigeru Miyamoto poured cold water on suggestions that Nintendo characters would converge on the next Mario movie.

"Right off the bat, I’ll say that unlike something like Super Smash Bros., I don't think you'll have a situation [where] all Nintendo characters would be joining," Miyamoto explained.

Still hunting for secrets? Shoot off into our guide on The Super Mario Galaxy Easter eggs.

For a more spoiler-filled breakdown, we've covered everything in our looks at The Super Mario Galaxy Movie ending and The Super Mario Galaxy Movie post-credits scenes.