Sonic the Hedgehog (film)


 * For other uses of the term "Sonic" see Sonic the Hedgehog (disambiguation).

Sonic is an upcoming adaptation based on the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise. It is being co-produced and financed by Paramount Pictures. The film, expected to be a CGI/live action hybrid film with the help of Sega's Marza Animation Planet unit, is being produced by Neal Moritz through his Original Film banner, with Tim Miller as executive producer under his animation company Blur Studio. The screenplay will be written by Patrick Casey, Josh Miller and Oren Uziel. It is the first entry to a planned film series. and is currently set for a release on 8 November 2019.

Initially, Sony Pictures acquired the film rights to Sonic the Hedgehog from Sega in 2013, and officially gave the green-light at a private joint Sega/Sony Pictures press conference announcing the film on 10 June 2014. In October 2017, due to financing issues, Sony sold the film rights to Paramount, who retained the film's production staff.

Plot
Tom Wachowski, the town sheriff of small town Green Hills, goes on a journey to San Francisco in his efforts to assist Sonic, an anthropomorphic delinquent hedgehog, and help him recover his rings from the evil Dr. Eggman, while the government is trying to catch him at the same time.

Live-action cast

 * Jim Carrey as Ivo Robotnik / Dr. Eggman, an evil scientist who is out to steal Sonic's rings and conquer the world.
 * James Marsden as Tom Wachowski, the sheriff of the small town of Green Hills, Montana, who ends up going on a road trip to San Francisco with Sonic the Hedgehog.
 * Lee Majdoub as Stone, an agent who works alongside Dr. Eggman.
 * Tika Sumpter as Tom Wachowski’s wife
 * TBA as Wade Whipple, the deputy sheriff of Green Hills

Voice cast

 * Ben Schwartz as Sonic the Hedgehog, an anthropomorphic "juvenile delinquent" blue hedgehog who can run at super-sonic speeds and is on the run from the government.

Unknown roles

 * Adam Pally
 * Natasha Rothwell
 * Neal McDonough
 * Frank C. Turner

Pre-production
On 3 December 2013, Sony Pictures Digital Domain Names, Inc., a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, filed a notice of registration for three inactive websites adressed as "SonicTheHedgehog-Movie.com", "SonicTheHedgehog-Movie.net" and "SonicTheHedgehogMovie.net". The registrations were reported by The Sonic Stadium on 7 December, but neither Sony Pictures nor Sega confirmed the existence of a proposed film project at the time.

On 20 March 2014, a film adaptation was first hinted when released a rumor about the film, stating that it would receive a "Dark Knight treatment" and posted a writer shortlist of proposed writers involved. On 10 June 2014, the official Sonic website was updated, with a locked section listing "TV and Movies." Later that same day, at a private Sega/Sony Pictures press conference, reported the confirmation of the film, and that Sony had green-lit the project.

It was revealed on 21 June 2014 that Sonic the Hedgehog and its eventual successor films will be a separate continuity from the Sonic Boom continuity. On 19 November 2014, Van Robichaux stated that the film production team is "aiming for [a] PG-13 [rating]".

On 31 October 2016, The Hollywood Reporter reported that Tim Miller, who had left directing Deadpool 2 due to creative differences, had been hired as executive producer for the film and that Jeff Fowler will assume directorial duties. Patrick Casey and Josh Miller are also confirmed to write the script.

It was announced on 2 October 2017 that Viacom-owned Paramount Pictures had acquired the film rights to Sonic the Hedgehog from Sony, replacing the latter as distributor. Sony had temporally shut down production before the switch after placing it into turnaround. The announcement came after co-producer Neal Moritz's Original Film banner signed a first-look production deal with Paramount the prior month, ending their previous deal with Sony, and several months after Sony's film financing partner LStar Capital ended its deal with Sony due to a string of box office failures from the studio. Despite the change of studios, the production staff working on the film remained employed and moved to Paramount as well. This is not the first time Paramount and Sega have crossed paths - from 1969 to 1983, both were subsidiaries of Gulf and Western Industries.

On 22 February 2018, an official press release was put out confirming the film's move to Paramount and a release date of 15 November 2019, a date that was first reported by The Hollywood Reporter two days prior. Sega will have creative input into the project and will co-finance it with Paramount, who will release the film worldwide.

Independent outlet Omega Underground reported on 4 March 2018 that the film's producers were circling Junkie XL to compose the film's musical score, reuniting him with Miller once again after doing the score for Deadpool. The site also reported that Paramount was aiming to begin filming at some point in July, backing up story co-writer Van Robichaux's speculation he tweeted a month prior.

On 1 April 2018, it was announced that filming was going to start on 30 July in Vancouver, instead of Atlanta as previously reported.

On 29 May 2018, it was reported that Paul Rudd is in talks for a lead role as Tom, "a cop who befriends Sonic and will likely team up to defeat Dr. Eggman". Paramount later clarified that this was not the case, but that Rudd had been considered for the role at one point. The same day it was revealed that the film will have a budget of $90 million. The following day, it was announced that James Marsden had been cast in an undisclosed role, later revealed to be Tom Wachowski.

On 7 June 2018, it was announced that Tika Sumpter was cast to star opposite James Marsden in an undisclosed role. On 12 June 2018, it was later stated that shots of the film would be filmed at Vancouver's Highway 19 during mid-September 2018, and that the movie's current title is "SONIC". Soon after, screenwriter Patrick Casey revealed that for the film, Sonic would have a design that was still him and yet a "little more realistic". At Too Many Games in 2018, Johnny Gioeli stated that “Sega Has Nothing To Do With The Sonic Movie”. Takashi Iizuka soon after corrected though, that he would be supervising the film. Sonic was originally slated for a 15 November 2018 release, but after Sony Pictures' turnaround, it is now scheduled to be released in the United States on 8 November 2019 by Paramount Pictures.

Filming
Principal photography commenced on 30 July 2018 at Vancouver, British Columbia, and continued until 30 September 2018. During filming, the picture was shot under the working title "Casino Night", a reference to the level in Sonic the Hedgehog 2. A casting call was ordered to run on 18 Aug 2018, 12:00 pm - 6:00 pm PT and 19 Aug 2018, 10:00 am - 2:00 pm PT for residents of Ladysmith, BC. The roles were for the "townsfolk" from the fictional town, Green Hills. Filming ended on 16 October 2018.