Earlier this month we saw the rather surprising news that Nintendo was finally allowing their mascot Mario to make the trip back to the big screen for the first time since the disastrous 1992 Super Mario Bros. film. Not to be outdone, Sega have reminded everyone that their own 16-bit-era mascot Sonic the Hedgehog is also getting a movie of his own.
The news of this movie comes from The Hollywood Reporter who claim the film will launch in November of 2019. This isn’t the first time we’ve heard about the film though — Sega originally announced its intention to bring Sonic to the big screen as early as February 2016 before signing Deadpool director Tim Miller as executive producer and Oscar nominated short filmmaker Jeff Fowler as director. Fowler’s short Gopher Broke gained an Oscar nomination for Best Animated Short Film in 2005.
At the time of its announcement Sega had hoped to get the movie in theatres by the end of 2018. That has obviously changed, and it will be interesting to note if Nintendo (who did not reveal when their new Super Mario film would be arriving in theatres) will once again find themselves up against their old foe in a brand new medium.
Little is known about the film beyond its decision to use a Roger Rabbit-esque blend of live action and animation, which puts it in similar territory as the upcoming Detective Pikachu movie — another Nintendo joint — which will beat Sonic to theatres by about half a year when it launches in May of 2019.
Beyond this, we are forced to tap our foot and wait like the ol’ blue blur himself. Perhaps we can pass the time by remembering the last time Sonic was given a movie of his own — the 1996 anime film Sonic the Hedgehog: The Movie. Brace yourself — the song they use in this trailer is … a bit of a wild ride.
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