When Paramount first released a trailer for the Sonic the Hedgehog movie, fans of the beloved Sega game character were outraged by his unnatural design, causing Paramount to delay the film to alter his look. This led animation teams to conduct significant amounts of overtime — also known as “crunch” — to redesign Sonic in time for release.
This has also caused greater scrutiny over Hollywood to get its video game adaptations correct.
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Marc Weinstock, Paramount Pictures marketing president, said, “Every design now is vetted within an inch of its life.” Weinstock reflection on Sonic’s redesign is a testament to the influence of online opinions in Hollywood.
Yuji Naka, co-creator of Sonic the Hedgehog, also chimed in on the original movie design, questioning the roundness of Sonic’s head and stomach (this came before Naka’s arrest for insider trading).
Sonic’s movie director, Jeff Fowler, admitted at the time of the original trailer’s release, “The message is loud and clear…” regarding the outrage by fans.
Paramount’s effort into Sonic’s improved art style helped the Sonic film series succeed. The franchise has a third movie in development, a Knuckles series spin-off, and will pass one billion dollars in revenue this year.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Hollywood executives are worried about further potential backlash from poor video game adaptations, as they are turning to Reddit and Discord game communities for feedback.
Video game movies continue to rise in the film industry, with The Super Mario Bros. Movie releasing last year and a Minecraft live-action adaption in the works.
Jared Hass, director of the Minecraft movie, told The Salt Lake Tribune that they’re trying to avoid an “Ugly Sonic” situation and that he “can’t disappoint the 10-year-olds, or they’re going to murder us.”
Image credit: Paramount
Source: The Wall Street Journal Via: Eurogamer
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