Deadpool proved to be one of the biggest hits of the year when it released back in February, and talk of a sequel began almost immediately. Recently news broke that Deadpool director Tim Miller, however, wouldn't be a part of the second film due to creative differences with star Ryan Reynolds.
That begged the question as to what Miller, who made his directorial debut on Deadpool, would work on next. Now we have an answer, and it's not one anybody saw coming. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Miller's next project will be helping to develop a CGI/live action hybrid film for Sonic the Hedgehog.
Yes, that Sonic the Hedgehog, the blue, bipedal creature wearing red sneakers that has served as game company Sega's mascot for decades. Sonic hasn't been featured in a quality game in quite some time, but his pop culture presence is still strong thanks to a brilliant social media team behind the wheel of Sonic's various promotional accounts. A film based on the character has been in the works since 2014.
Miller would serve as executive producer on the film, while Blur Studio's Jeff Fowler (Miller co-founded Blur) is set to make his directorial debut with the film. Blur often does CGI trailers for various video games and is also responsible for the visual effects in Deadpool. Miller and Fowler have long collaborated together, so it seems like a natural fit for them to work together on Sonic.
"Jeff is an incredible director with strong story instincts," Miller says about Fowler. "The world of Sonic presents the perfect opportunity for him to leverage his experience in animation to bring new dimension to this iconic character."
For whatever reason, it doesn't seem like Blur Studio itself will be working on the film. That honor will go to Sony Pictures and Marza Animation Planet, a CG animation company that's part of the Sega Sammy group.
But this all begs the question: what would a Sonic movie be about? The various games see Sonic and his friends like Tails and Knuckles collecting rings, running fast and attempting to thwart the robotic machinations of the evil Dr. Robotnik. That's the simple version at least.
The project sounds like it's still a ways off, so Sonic fans will have to wait for more concrete details. But it seems like the "Blue Blur" is set to arrive on the silver screen in a big way sooner rather than later.
