When Prince Florian was first revealed in the June 2023 Nintendo Direct for the game, some fans believed that he was either a callback or reimagining of Prince Haru, a character that only appeared in the 1986 anime film "Super Mario Bros: The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach" who transforms from a dog known as Kibidango into a human. This prospect was seen as troubling by Mario fans who partake in shipping, with some believing that Mario and Peach would be retconned as no longer being romantically interested, with Florian taking Mario's place as Peach's boyfriend, as Haru was in the movie.

Upon the game's release, Florian would not show any romantic interest in Peach, nor transform into a human, with their only similarities being that they are princes of flower kingdoms and Florian's facial structure baring a loose resemblance to that of Kibidango.