After the first official trailer for Paramount Pictures and SEGA’s Sonic the Hedgehog hybrid flick dropped earlier this week, the internet backlash was fast and furious. Most of the fan criticism was directed at the film’s anthropomorphic CG hero — Sonic’s “human teeth” and sprinter’s legs are particular focuses of ire. Director Jeff Fowler took to Twitter on Thursday to vow changes to the maligned designs will happen:
“Thank you for the support. And the criticism. The message is loud and clear. You aren’t happy with the design & you want changes. It’s going to happen. Everyone at Paramount & Sega are fully committed to making this character the BEST he can be…#sonicmovie #gottafixfast.”
Thank you for the support. And the criticism. The message is loud and clear… you aren’t happy with the design & you want changes. It’s going to happen. Everyone at Paramount & Sega are fully committed to making this character the BEST he can be… #sonicmovie #gottafixfast ?✌️
— Jeff Fowler (@fowltown) May 2, 2019
Digital artist Edward Pun offered up a rework of one of the key stills which shows a much more stylized Sonic, truer to his appearance in the popular animated series.
Left is original screenshot. Right is my rework to make #Sonic more stylized. pic.twitter.com/IhXeAZYlQI
— Edward Pun (@EdwardPun1) April 30, 2019
Sonic the Hedgehog is due for release on November 8, and stars Ben Schwartz as the voice of Sonic, Jim Carry as Dr. Robotnik, James Marsden as Tom Wachowski, and Tika Sumpter.
Synopsis: Sonic the Hedgehog is a live-action adventure comedy based on the global blockbuster video game franchise from Sega that centers on the infamously brash bright blue hedgehog. The film follows the (mis)adventures of Sonic as he navigates the complexities of life on Earth with his newfound – human – best friend Tom Wachowski. Sonic and Tom join forces to try and stop the villainous Dr. Robotnik from capturing Sonic and using his immense powers for world domination.
