Sonic Live Action Movie Thread (Read OP for topic rules) "Trailer 2 on Page 482)

[Sonic Fan J]

It does seem a little contradictory at this point, though I am glad to see there is travel involved. On the other hand, why bring Tom and his friends along? For Sonic that distance is like a little over two hour run. I guess at this point we'll need to wait to get more details on how they are handling rings.

[DabigRG]

Hey there, been a while since I trudged through this mess.

What did I miss since The Riddler got into the Eggmobile?

[Razule]

32 minutes ago, PeterPancake said:

Two new actors added to the cast 

https://www.google.com/amp/collider.com/sonic-the-hedgehog-movie-adam-pally-neal-mcdonough/amp/

 

Adam Pally and Neal McDonough. Adam will play a cop but I wonder who this guy could be playing 

Maybe the strict chief that fires Tom for being a loose cannon, leading to the third act misunderstanding where Tom and Sonic have an argument and split up for a bit.

7 minutes ago, DabigRG said:

Hey there, been a while since I trudged through this mess.

What did I miss since The Riddler got into the Eggmobile?

Sonic is voiced by Ben Schwartz, and the news above you.

[PeterPancake]

I don't think that synopsis contradicts what we've heard from the filming notice and the Paramount CEO himself. Sonic can still be on the run from Government while being a juvenile delinquent on a race against time to stop Robotnik.

 

The interesting part is the road trip aspect and the significance of Sonic's rings. Why not use the Chaos Emeralds?

No mention of Tails or Knuckles thus far, though. And it's looking likely that they won't be in the movie 

[CaptainRobo]

Marsden will play a small-town cop from South Dakota who ends up going on a road trip to San Francisco with Sonic the Hedgehog as they race against the evil Dr. Robotnik (Carrey) to recover Sonic’s rings. Pally will play a fellow cop, while McDonough’s role remains under wraps

So, City Escape?

[ShadowSJG]

Why does this movie still exist?

[PeterPancake]

1 minute ago, ShadowSJG said:

Why does this movie still exist?

Money

[Dr. Detective]

1 hour ago, PeterPancake said:

Money

Wasting a ton of money on something that's not going to make any money seems like a weird way to go about making money. 

[a knothole resident]

Its gonna be so weird how everyone's collective speculation of the plot may actually come true. 

[PeterPancake]

1 minute ago, Dr. Detective Mike said:

Wasting a ton of money on something that's not going to make any money seems like a weird way to go about making money. 

Mind sharing that Crystal ball with everyone?

5 minutes ago, a knothole resident said:

Its gonna so weird how everyone's collective speculation of the plot actually comes true. 

It is... Odd. A lot of stuff going on in this movie. I hope they can balance out all of these sub-plots

[Dr. Detective]

1 hour ago, PeterPancake said:

Mind sharing that Crystal ball with everyone?

I didn't use a crystal ball. Context clues and the historical evidence surrounding certain live-action video game movies and the way the majority usually turn out financially was kind of all I needed. 

Seems kind of silly to rely on magic to hypothesize things.

[Razule]

Ugh, not this again.. the clouds may mean it's likely it will rain at some point, but at the end of the day, we can't really know for sure until it either does or doesn't happen. Save the "told you sos" for later.

[Dr. Detective]

1 hour ago, Razule said:

Ugh, not this again.. the clouds may mean it's likely it will rain at some point, but at the end of the day, we can't really know for sure until it either does or doesn't happen. Save the "told you sos" for later.

No one was going "told you so" or bragging about it. I'm convinced this is a waste of time and money. I'm not gonna act like I don't think it is. Maybe when I was younger I would have for the sake of keeping an open mind but there's so much I think is going to be awful about this coupled with the way things usually go for these kinds of movies that I have no reason to. 

[PeterPancake]

Sonic is more iconic than all of the previous video game adaptations and he has much wider appeal than the likes of Tekken or Assassin's Creed or Tomb Raider. And besides, Rampage and Tomb Raider did decent so the tide is slowly turning 

[Dr. Detective]

1 hour ago, PeterPancake said:

Sonic is more iconic than all of the previous video game adaptations and he has much wider appeal than the likes of Tekken or Assassin's Creed or Tomb Raider. And besides, Rampage and Tomb Raider did decent so the tide is slowly turning 

Sonic being "iconic" doesn't lend much worth to whether or not this particular movie is going to do well. It barely functions as a reason he'll be successful at anything nowadays. If the movie looks awful or people aren't jiving with the way it feels, no one's going to gravitate towards it. Certainly not when it comes to bringing in the casual, Non-Sonic fan audience. The context behind the way something looks and is presented and whether or not it fits the series it's apart of goes towards making a movie successful.

It isn't blasphemous for Tomb Raider to see some success when all making a movie about it basically amounts to is making a generic action movie where you try to survive some stuff and fire guns at people. 

Rampage is even more of a non surprise. I didn't even know it was a video game movie until I saw a video of someone reviewing the trailer. That's because it looks like yet another giant monster movie. And it starred Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson. Its status as a video game movie barely matters in its case. 

Sonic might have had a better chance conforming to what it is by embracing being a cartoon, though, even then I doubt it'd see too much success unless the marketing for it was super good. But relying on SEGA to market Sonic properly is kind of a fool's errand unless it's something they have actual confidence in, like Mania.

Just based on what I've seen and heard so far, I don't see this working comfortably enough as a natural movie and I also don't see it working on the front of being a faithful video game adaptation either. 

 

[a knothole resident]

39 minutes ago, Dr. Detective Mike said:

But relying on SEGA to market Sonic properly is kind of a fool's errand unless it's something they have actual confidence in, like Mania.

This kinda circles back to the original idea of why this shouldve been an animated movie in the first place.  We need a team with the same dedication and devotion as the people involved with Sonic Mania to tackle something like this.  Otherwise, it might be another generic Hollywood spin on a popular franchise.  I just hope it maintains a cult status of being an underrated gem or a hilarious disaster. The biggest fear, is that its legitimately bad to where its forgettable.  If the latter happens, then thats huge blow for SEGA.  All those years waiting, the numerous failed attempts stemming back to the 90s resulting in something nobody cares about.  Depressing to think about.

[PeterPancake]

John Campea is excited

 

A lot causal fans are digging what they're hearing from this movie, Mike. And yes, Sonic being an icon DOES matter because everybody knows who he is, all ages. He has a very wide demographic. It's like comparing somebody like Squirrel Girl to Spider-Man and saying the brand recognition will make no difference for the box-office of both films... It will. None of the previous properties that got adapted are anywhere near Sonic in terms of popularity or pop culture. As for the fans, the hardcore fans are impossible to please. As evidenced by how the fanbase has reacted countless times in the past to every decision Sega makes and the continuous cycle of outrage from Sonic fans every time something comes out about this movie because it's not a 1:1 adaptation of the games. 

 

I don't look at Sonic like I look at Street Figher, Assassin and Tekken. It's wayyy closer to something like Transformers which use to be a box office smash. And Paramount agrees with me, Mike. That's why they want a franchise out of Sonic and there is a shit ton of material to mine from for future sequels.

 

Now anway, what are the chances that Neal McDonough is playing some Government official who wants to capture Sonic. 

 

Best. Sonic. Ever.

[a knothole resident]

10 minutes ago, PeterPancake said:

That's why they want a franchise out of Sonic and there is a shit ton of material to mine from for future sequels.

True, think of the success potential.  Not only do you have the many story arcs from the games, but 4 cartoon shows and 3 comic book series.  Can you imagine Sonic Spin Off movies ala Star Wars?  They can take place in these other universes (Aosth, SatAM, Underground, X, Boom, ect) and be stand alones.  Live action or fully animated.
 

[The Deleter]

Quote

Marsden will play a small-town cop from South Dakota who ends up going on a road trip to San Francisco with Sonic the Hedgehog as they race against the evil Dr. Robotnik (Carrey) to recover Sonic’s rings.

???

Is the end game going to be a battle over the coveted 1-up monitor???

 

It's crazy how much the synopsis for this movie changes from interview to interview, though. First one made it seem like the movie would have a driving core behind the narrative with Sonic and Tom's mutual 'needed' friendship in a small town, then there was one which made it seem like it's a typical popcorn flick with Sonic being chased by the government, now apparently it's a road trip movie revolving around random game maguffins and Sonic and Eggman's typical(?) rivalry?

On one hand I'm kinda glad it's not going to be exactly what I expected from the movie initially, as it's more up in the air how it'll turn out, but on the other hand why does everyone have a different idea of what the movie is about, exactly?

[PeterPancake]

2 minutes ago, a knothole resident said:

True, think of the success potential.  Not only do you have the many story arcs from the games, but 4 cartoon shows and 3 comic book series.  Can you imagine Sonic Spin Off movies ala Star Wars?  They can take place in these other universes (Aosth, SatAM, Underground, X, Boom, ect) and be stand alones.  Live action or fully animated.
 

If Sonic is a success, you can guarantee Paramount will start milking the franchise with sequels and spin-offs while Sega turns Sonic into a worldwide merchandising bemoth. That lightning from Transformers can strike twice. 

 

We could easily get a Sonic cinematic universe, direct to dvd movies, new shows (multiple shows) and shit ton of merchandise. There will be renewed interest in the brand as a whole and everybody will have Sonic mania (pun intended) this movie being a hit could do so much good for the franchise as a whole. 

 

[CaptainRobo]

So, someone spotted this filming notice in Downtown Ladysmith.:

Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/SonicTheHedgehog/comments/9609bt/found_in_downtown_ladysmith_bc/

 

[Myst]

4 hours ago, PeterPancake said:

Two new actors added to the cast 

https://www.google.com/amp/collider.com/sonic-the-hedgehog-movie-adam-pally-neal-mcdonough/amp/

 

Adam Pally and Neal McDonough. Adam will play a cop but I wonder who this guy could be playing 

The G.U.N Commander?

[DabigRG]

4 hours ago, Razule said:

 

Sonic is voiced by Ben Schwartz,.

...Who? What? Why?

[Dr. Detective]

3 hours ago, PeterPancake said:

A lot causal fans are digging what they're hearing from this movie, Mike. And yes, Sonic being an icon DOES matter because everybody knows who he is, all ages. He has a very wide demographic. It's like comparing somebody like Squirrel Girl to Spider-Man and saying the brand recognition will make no difference for the box-office of both films... It will. None of the previous properties that got adapted are anywhere near Sonic in terms of popularity or pop culture. As for the fans, the hardcore fans are impossible to please. As evidenced by how the fanbase has reacted countless times in the past to every decision Sega makes and the continuous cycle of outrage from Sonic fans every time something comes out about this movie because it's not a 1:1 adaptation of the games. 

I don't look at Sonic like I look at Street Figher, Assassin and Tekken. It's wayyy closer to something like Transformers which use to be a box office smash. And Paramount agrees with me, Mike. That's why they want a franchise out of Sonic and there is a shit ton of material to mine from for future sequels.

The assertion that a lot of casual fans are digging what they're hearing about this movie is something I'm gonna need heavy, overwhelming proof of first off. Outside of this thread, I haven't seen much in support of the ideas presented here. No, Sonic being iconic doesn't matter should the movie look like it's going to be bad. The tactic of using him because he's an icon will only get you so far. There's also different factors to think about when discussing what kind of movie it is. There's people who might not like Sonic and because they know who Sonic is will avoid it. There's a chance that presenting people with something that takes advantage of what the Sonic series is and works towards presenting it the best way it can could change their minds but that's also not a promise of anything.

No, it's not like comparing Squirrel Girl to Spiderman. I'm not comparing Sonic to all these other franchises you keep bringing up. The trend of these live action video game adaptations failing often happen because of the approach most studios take when addressing the subject matter individually, that's why I said this movie will most likely follow the trend the other failed ones did. It's got nothing to do with the properties themselves. Hollywood notoriously sucks at finding ways to make these movies appealing to people, regardless of what franchise it is. 

I don't believe Sonic, on his own, has enough going for him that he'd be able land a successful financial outcome on a live-action movie where he meets some random cop. Movies that tend to rely on live-action usually have some sort of basis for doing so that would make the decision make sense for the series it was working with. 

Whether or not the other adapted properties actually are near Sonic in terms of popularity or pop-culture (something I'm also not 100% sure of nowadays) isn't the underlying factor when it comes to selling a movie about him either. You need to take into account what about Sonic needs to be adapted correctly in order to sell what about him constitutes a theatrical release and how to not make that look dumb, cheap, and worthless. I've not been convinced that they can do so. I probably will never be simply because of the conception behind the film in fact.

The outrage of the movie not being a 1:1 adaptation of the games isn't an issue. This isn't a problem of not liking "change" as I've said before. The change here is incredibly dramatic and you can't dramatically change something after 20+ years of it being something else and not expect it to be scrutinized in some manner. There's a clear difference between something like how different the Archie Comics, Sonic X, or even Sonic Boom were from the games to something like this. It's hyperbolic and silly to suggest backlash against this is because hardcore fans aren't happy it's a perfect mirror of the games. It's impossible for that to be encapsulated in a movie and changes are necessary when transferring mediums all the time, sure, but there's a line.

There's a reason why literally everything isn't accepted as far as change goes. Imagine if SEGA announced Sonic was now going to be a duck in the latest Sonic cartoon. Would your response to that be "You're just mad because you can't accept that it's not going to be a 1:1 adaptation of the games". I'd hope not because that's ridiculous. That might be an extreme example but there's varying levels of extremism when it comes to changes too. Making Sonic live-action is one of those things that drastically tosses tons of the advantages Sonic had as a series out the window for me. I truly believe that. Every other piece of news I've heard hasn't helped. The only good news I feel I've heard is that they've hired a guy who might be able to do a good Sonic voice. I've no reason to anticipate anything or to expect it'll make good money. I don't even really want it to be a success if it turns out to be as bad as I feel it will be.

I'm not speaking in terms of a hardcore fan. I'm speaking in terms of a concerned one. I'm usually not the guy who looks at something coming out and reacts with 100% negativity but for this, I am. It's a strange position to be in and a regrettable one but here we are.

I agree that there's a lot of potential to work with from Sonic but potential doesn't mean anything if you're not able to work with anything properly. At best, it'll be something you lament because it wasn't lived up to. Forces had a ton of potential. The game we got didn't live up to it, in my opinion. I know Sonic itself is a great and promising series but if the people working on it don't know what they're doing then that means fuck all.

I also don't really care what Paramount thinks or who they agree with on whatever issue they might have. The project wasn't originally there's to begin with because of development hell nonsense that saw the project getting tossed to them like a hot potato.

 

[SBR2]

HOLY CRAP DAMEON DAHRK! Sorry but he will be competing with Carrey for stealing the entire movie.