In a bid to launch the next big family film franchise, Sony Pictures and SEGA are teaming up to bring Sonic the Hedgehog to the big screen in a movie which would feature a mixture of live-action setting and actors as well as CG animated characters similar to movies like The Smurfs and Alvin and the Chipmunks.
Little known writers Evan Susser and Van Robichaux will adapt the once incredibly popular video game series for Sony and SEGA, while 22 Jump Street’s Neal H. Moritz will produce through his Original Film banner, with Marza’s Takeshi Ito and Mie Onishi.
They have big plans for the franchise and will apparently release a movie per year.
The first will focus on Sonic the Hedgehog’s rivalry with the same characters he feuded with in the video games, including his nemesis Dr. Eggman. Over the last two decades, the franchise has sold over 140 million games and generated over $1 billion in revenues, so they have high hopes for the movie!
“There are limitless stories to tell with a character like Sonic the Hedgehog, and a built-in international fan base. Along with our wonderful creative partners at Marza, we’re looking to capture everything that generations of fans know and love about Sonic while also growing his audience wider than ever before,” Sony Pictures production president Hannah Minghella said in a statement released earlier today.
Marza Animation Planet CEO Masanao Maeda added, “Sonic has had dozens of adventures on the console and the small screen, and we’re thrilled that he’s now coming to the big screen. Sony Pictures has had great success with hybrid animated and live-action features, and we’re confident that this collaboration will bring a fresh take to Sonic, while still capturing everything that the fans love about him.”
