In an interview with Worldfolio, CEO Hajime Satomi revealed that Sega Sammy Holdings, the company-formerly-known-as Sega, and Sony have set a tentative premiere date for the typical '90s kid's ultimate dream movie: a big-screen adaptation of the Sonic the Hedgehog video game franchise.
"Sega Sammy Group is currently planning with Sony Pictures to create a live-action and animation hybrid Sonic the Hedgehog movie scheduled for release in 2018," the president and CEO told the publication, making sure to note that the move is being made in an effort to broaden the company's prospects. "Like with this CG animation production, we would like to expand our business into other entertainment areas beyond what we are currently involved."
If the news sounds slightly familiar, there's a reason: Neal Moritz (whose past credits include The Fast and the Furious franchise and the Will Smith vehicle I Am Legend) announced his intentions to helm the movie's production in 2014 with Sega Sammy Group, with Evan Susser and Van Robichaux named the adaptation's screenwriters. So far, there is no word on who is set to direct.
Besides Satomi's announcement, it seems that Sega Sammy Group gave us another clue via the official Twitter account for the Sonic the Hedgehog character. The cryptic social media post hinted that the movie will in some way involve the French mashup recording artist Madeon.
The key lies with @madeon. Good luck. pic.twitter.com/iwpkUhXGp9
— Sonic the Hedgehog (@sonic_hedgehog) February 9, 2016
This isn't the first time Sonic has been adapted for the screen: the hedgehog has been the protagonist and star of six animated TV shows since 1993, and has made cameos in Disney's 2012 CGI video game homage Wreck It Ralph.
What a live-action and animation hybrid will entail is anyone's guess - examples of the genre range anywhere from James Cameron's sci-fi epic Avatar to Robert Zemeckis' fantasy-comedy-cartoon noir Who Framed Roger Rabbit? - but Satomi's admission that the flick will in some way implement CG hints that it will probably stylistically veer toward the former example, rather than the latter.
The Sonic the Hedgehog movie adaptation is set to be released sometime in 2018, with no specific date or month attached.
Get into the Sonic-inspired spirit by checking out footage from the hedgehog's first video-game-to-small-screen adaptation The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog in the video clip below.
Source: Worldfolio
