The Starman, sometimes also refered to Super Stars or simply Stars, is a powerup that renders a character invincible for a short set amount of time. It can either be found hidden in blocks or by gathering Cherries. Characters who have a normally slow running speed will receive a speed boost to Mario's top speed while it is active.
Any weak enemy will be killed instantly upon contact with the Starman. If a character kills enough enemies during the length of the Starman, then the character will gain one extra life for each enemy killed until the Starman fades. The bug that existed in the Goombas has now been removed, so there is no skipping in the points awarded.
Below is a table of what the Starman gives:
| Enemies Killed | Points Awarded |
| 1 enemy | 200 points |
| 2 enemies | 400 points |
| 3 enemies | 800 points |
| 4 enemies | 1000 points |
| 5 enemies | 2000 points |
| 6 enemies | 4000 points |
| 7 enemies | 8000 points |
| 8 or more enemies | 1 extra life |
| Standard | Super Mushroom | Fire Flower | Raccoon Leaf | Hammer Bros. Suit | Tanooki Suit | Blue Shell | |
| Crossover | Sci-Fi Suit | Mega Man Suit | Soldier Suit | |
| Other | 1-Up Mushroom | 3-Up Moon | Poison Mushroom | Starman | Lil Reaper | Stomp Boots | Life Energy | |