Everyone's favorite blue blur will star in his own feature film next year, according to The Hollywood Reporter. "Sonic the hedgehog" will hit theaters on November 15, 2019.
The Paramount project has tapped Neal H. Moritz as producer with "Deadpool" director Tim Miller also coming along for the ride as executive producer. Jeff Fowler will direct the film, making his directional debut with this project. The script will be written by Pat Casey and Josh Miller. The duo previously worked on "Golan The Insatiable" for Fox Animation.
The movie was announced in February 2016
The movie, first announced back in February 2016, was originally scheduled to come out in 2018 but never had a firm date. Paramount has previously stated that the project will include a mix of live-action and CGI, possibly giving off a "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" vibe in the process.
Gamers are also looking forward to another film next year that will use a CGI and live-action mix, "Detective Pikachu," based on the popular "Pokemon" character. That film will release in May 2019 and will likely serve as a barometer for Sonic's chances, based on the overall reaction to the mix of technology.
The character was originally created as a rival to Nintendo's Mario
"Sonic the Hedgehog" has served as Sega's mascot since his introduction in 1991. The character was originally created as a rival to Nintendo's Mario, although that competition ended long ago when Sega left the hardware business in favor of releasing software on multiple platforms, including Nintendo's.
Most gamers will tell you that Sonic has fallen off in recent years with many of the franchise's 3D titles failing to impress fans. That said, Sonic has made a bit of a comeback in recent months, with the 2nd half of 2017 seeing the release of two games: "Sonic Mania," a 2D homage to the games of the past that was very well received by most critics and "Sonic Forces," the franchise's latest 3D adventure that was once again less well received.
Despite the ups and downs, "Sonic the Hedgehog" has sold more than 360 million copies across various platforms over the years, making Sega's blue hedgehog one of the most recognized video game icons in the world.
Whether or not "Sonic Mania's" recent success will be enough to get fans into the theater remains to be seen. The movie will clearly be aimed at younger fans but the live-action shots could perhaps appeal to an older audience as well. Given that Sonic will be 28 years old when the movie hits theaters, there will likely be plenty of fans in their 30s and even 40s who might be willing to buy a ticket if Sega and Paramount can pull it off.
