Sonic the Hedgehog (2004 film)

Sonic the Hedgehog (Japanese: ソニック・ザ・ヘッジホッグ, Hepburn: Sonikku Za Hejjihoggu) is a 2004 computer-animated action-adventure fantasy comedy film directed by Jeff Fowler and Conrad Vernon, produced by Ben Jameson, Andrew Adamson, Neal H. Moritz, Kelly Asbury, Toru Nakahara, Takeshi Ito, Graham Anderson and William Anderson and written by Patrick Casey, Josh Miller, Toru Nakahara, Takeshi Ito and F. Gary Gray based on a screenplay by Casey, Miller, Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg.

Based on the Sonic the Hedgehog series by Sega and Sonic Team, the film stars the voice of Greg Cipes as the titular character, with Tara Strong, Ewan McGregor, Jennifer Hale, Vin Diesel, Jack Black, and Rowan Atkinson. After his home Green Hills gets tarnished by the wrath of Doctor Robotnik (Black), Sonic the Hedgehog (Cipes) teams up with his friend Miles "Tails" Prower the Fox (Strong) and Knuckles the Echidna (Diesel) after meeting some new friends, Wilson (McGregor) and Jenny Brenton (Hale), as Doctor Robotnik travels across dimensions to Madison, Wisconsin.

The film, an international co-production between the United States, the United Kingdom and Japan, was produced by Paramount Feature Animation, Universal Pictures, Nickelodeon Movies, Amblin Entertainment, Sega Films, Sega Animation, Sonic Team, Original Film, and Team Blue Studios, with Sony Pictures Imageworks and Industrial Light & Magic providing animation and visual effects services.

Premiering in Glasgow, Scotland on April 1, 2004, Sonic the Hedgehog was theatrically released in the United Kingdom and the United States by Paramount Pictures on April 4 and 9, 2004, internationally by Universal Pictures on April 11, 2004. The film received universal acclaim upon release, with critics praising its animation, visual effects, voice cast (particularly Cipes, Strong, Diesel, McGregor and Black), musical score by Michael Giacchino and Henry Jackman, plot, storyline, humor, songs, and faithfulness to the source material. It was a box office success, grossing $899.7 million worldwide on its budget of $75-85 million. Two sequels followed: Sonic the Hedgehog 2 in 2008, and Sonic the Hedgehog 3 in 2011.

Plot
Sonic the Hedgehog, an anthropomorphic blue hedgehog who can run at supersonic speeds, was enjoying his life in Green Hills, when one day, it was mysteriously bombed by an evil scientist named Doctor Robotnik.

Voice cast

 * Main article: List of Sonic the Hedgehog characters


 * Greg Cipes as Sonic the Hedgehog
 * Tara Strong as Miles "Tails" Prower
 * Ewan McGregor as Wilson Brenton
 * Jennifer Hale as Jenny Brenton
 * Vin Diesel as Knuckles the Echidna
 * Jack Black as Doctor Robotnik
 * Rowan Atkinson as Metal Sonic
 * Cameron Diaz as Amy Rose the Hedgehog
 * Will Smith as Sheriff Gregory Richardson
 * Pamela Adlon as Jessica Richardson
 * Trey Parker as Vector the Crocodile
 * Kevin Michael Richardson as Espio the Chameleon
 * Maddie Blaustein as Charmy Bee
 * Debi Derryberry as Mighty the Armadillo
 * Scarlett Johansson as Ray the Flying Squirrel

Pre-development
Following the success of Sonic the Hedgehog: The Movie on home video, Sega had visions of making another Sonic feature-length film. Plans for a second Sonic movie was in talks with Hollywood Pictures in 1998. Rocky Morton, the director for the 1993 live-action adaptation to Super Mario Bros., was set to direct it. However, it never came to fruition. This was later revealed by Sega Executive Chairman Isao Okawa, that the idea of a live-action adaptation to Sonic would be "an absolute disgrace to the general public who adored the video games".

In 1999, 20th Century Fox was interested in doing a movie adaptation to Sonic, and was set to produce it with Regency Enterprises. However, like the plan with Hollywood Pictures, the idea never came to fruition. The aesthetic of the film was going to be 2D animated, with animation provided by Philippine Animation Studio Inc., with Shane Acker attached as director, in his directorial debut. After the idea was disbanded, it was switched to Paramount Pictures. In early 2000, test CGI renders were provided, depicting Sonic as an altered version unlike the video games, with pointier spikes, improved details, textured fur, and other details. Sonic was given semi-realistic eyes, colored green like the video games. After a thorough corporate discussion, a deal was made.

Development
In 2000, a Sonic the Hedgehog movie was given the green light by Paramount Pictures, who had worked out a deal with Sega to produce a fully computer-animated film, after it was previously envisioned as a 2D-animated film, with animation to be provided by the Canadian animation production company Spectra Animation. However, it never fell through, as Spectra was dealing with the development of other television shows at this time period. It was later announced that Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment were attached to the project, with Steven Spielberg as an executive producer and screenwriter. Additionally, DreamWorks Pictures co-founder Jeffrey Katzenberg served as a co-executive producer and a screenwriter for the film, though DreamWorks was not credited in the final film.

Games Animation, Inc. was signed to the project for additional editorial work. Head of production for Games Animation was served by Graham Anderson, with Head of Animation held by William Anderson, Graham's son. Both served as producers for the film. Ben Jameson of Team Blue Studios was also attached to the project, as a producer. Originally intended to be a screenwriter and storyboard artist, they attached Jameson to the project as a producer. Originally proposed to have Hiro K.O. Entertainment tied to the project, Hiro K.O. backed out of the project to make way for Unreal: A Gametoons Movie (2003).

Andrew Adamson, the director for Shrek, and its eventual sequel Shrek 2, was signed to the project as a producer. High school screenwriting duo Patrick Casey and Josh Miller were attached to the project as the additional screenwriters, and served as the storywriters for the film, alongside Toru Nakahara, Takeshi Ito and F. Gary Gray. Nakahara and Ito served as the co-producers of the film. It was later revealed that Neal H. Moritz, the founder of Original Film, was attached to the project, along with animator Kelly Asbury, who both served as producers.

Death of Isao Okawa
During the middle of March 2001, Sega Executive Chairman Isao Okawa was admitted to the hospital, after reports of a deteriorating heart. On the 16th of March, Okawa was pronounced dead at Tokyo University Hospital at 3:47pm. An autopsy revealed that Okawa died from heart failure on March 16.

Casting
Revealed by Jeff Fowler in 2002, Greg Cipes was signed to the casting team as Sonic the Hedgehog. During recording tests, casting crew found Cipes to deliver a young, yet mature tone to Sonic. Fans praised the decision of Cipe as Sonic, since it was Sonic's first feature-length motion picture, and that Cipes would capture the perfect voice of Sonic in film. Tara Strong, an acclaimed actor known for her voice performance as Timmy Turner in the animated television series The Fairly OddParents, was cast as Miles "Tails" Prower. Director Conrad Vernon said that Tara Strong was "the perfect voice for Tails", and that she "captures the young, smart voice of the fox".

The Fast and the Furious actor Vin Diesel, who portrayed Dom Toretto in the film, was cast to the film as Knuckles the Echidna. Diesel had expressed interest as playing Knuckles since the film's announcement in 2000. Originally supposed to be cast by Toy Story actor Tom Hanks, Vin Diesel was given the role. Tom Hanks expressed in an interview that he was "disappointed that [he] didn't get the role", but appreciated the casting of Vin Diesel to the project, and wished him "good luck". Hanks was cast as minor character appearances in the film.

Scottish-born actor Ewan McGregor was cast in the film as Wilson Brenton, a former sheriff for the Madison Police Department, and the wife of Jenny Brenton, a woman from Toronto and a nurse for the SSM Health St. Mary's Hospital in Madison, whose voice was provided by Newfoundland-born actor Jennifer Hale. This would later apply to the 2020 live-action film Sonic the Hedgehog, starring James Marsden as Tom Wachowski, a sheriff for the Green Hills Police Department, and Tika Sumpter as Tom's wife Maddie Wachowski, a doctor.

Following the casting of McGregor and Hale, it was revealed by Jeff Fowler in October 2002 that acclaimed actor Jack Black would be providing the voice work for Doctor Robotnik. Jack Black expressed in an interview with CBS News that he was "ecstatic", "thrilled", and "honored to voice the big bad Robotnik". Jack Black's vocal performance as Robotnik was sinister, evil, demeaning, and cunning, much like the video games. Test audiences absolutely loved Black's performance, that he was guaranteed to win an Oscar when the film was released. Around the same time, in early November 2002, British actor Rowan Atkinson, who is best known for playing the role of the titular character in the Johnny English series, was cast as Shadow the Hedgehog.

Atkinson had expressed interest in voicing Shadow the Hedgehog during the animation process. His moment came in September 2002 when he was approached by Paramount Pictures for him to lend his vocal performance for Shadow. Jackman agreed, and signed to the project. His voice delivery was evil, witting, and demeaning, similar to Jack Black's vocal performance of Robotnik. Later during the production, Cameron Diaz, an acclaimed actor known for her performance as Princess Fiona in the Shrek franchise, was cast as Amy Rose the Hedgehog, Sonic's love interest. Test audiences praised Diaz's test performance of Amy, calling it "charming", "wholesome", and "natural".

Animation and visual effects
The animation and visual effects were produced at Sony Pictures Imageworks and Industrial Light & Magic. The film includes 1,205 computer-animated shots. Each shot was rendered using high-performance graphics card systems provided by American technology corporation Intel, and high-quality rendering capabilities funded by Microsoft Corporation. The main characters' fur and hair were rendered with additional CGI work by the now-defunct American animation studio Rhythm & Hues Studios. The latter company was credited in the final film, in the end credits.

Sony Pictures Imageworks and Industrial Light & Magic produced their animation separately. Sony Pictures Imageworks produced the CGI animation, while Industrial Light & Magic supervised in CGI animation, while they also provided the visual effects for the film. Rough Draft Studios, a Korean animation studio, providing 2D animation work for flashback sequences involving Sonic's past life. They, like Rhythm & Hues Studios, were credited in the final film.

Blur Studio, an American animation company, who had previously worked on animation for South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut (1999), was attached to the project to provide additional visual effect work. German visual effects company Scanline VFX was also signed to the project, providing minor CGI details, and provided additional visual effects. British animation companies Double Negative (now DNEG) and Moving Picture Company were also signed to the project.

Upon the completion of the animation in full, the animation was packed and shipped to Paramount Feature Animation in Hollywood, California. The animation was compiled and put together, with editorial work done by John Carnochan and Gregory Perler, the latter of which provided editorial work for Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius.

Uncut film
A fully uncut version of the film with deleted scenes from the final film surfaced on YouTube on September 29, 2008. The film included the same aspects of the original motion picture, though included unreleased scenes that were not included in the final film.

Music

 * Main article: Sonic the Hedgehog (soundtrack)

The film's score was composed by American composer Michael Giacchino and British composer Henry Jackman. Giacchino and Jackman worked closely with Sonic composers Masato Nakamura and Jun Senoue on the project, with Giacchino incorporating music from the games into the film's score. The scoring took place at the Newman Scoring Stage at 20th Century Fox. The process spanned from September 28, 2002 to December 12, 2003.

The film's score album was released on April 9, 2004 through Sony Music Entertainment, via Paramount Records. The film's soundtrack album, which contained original songs and already existing songs from various artists, was released on April 4, 2004 through Universal Music Group, via Interscope Records. The song The Speed of Sound by Black Eyed Peas received critical acclaim, earning 8x Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. "Gotta Go Fast" and "The Fastest Thing Alive", both from Sonic X" and "Sonic SatAM" ere included in the film's official soundtrack album.

Marketing
The film was heavily promoted worldwide, with teaser posters and advertisements spread across the world. The first teaser trailer was promoted in the United States, with its original release date of August 22, 2003. The first theatrical trailer premiered on July 19, 2003, with its current release date of April 9, 2004. Internationally, the distribution rights were handled by Universal Pictures, with its release date of April 11.

A special trailer debuted during commercial breaks, and featured the song "Gotta Go Fast", the main theme song for the 2003 anime television series Sonic X. Response to this was overwhelmingly positive. A second trailer debuted in November 2003, with the song The Fastest Thing Alive from the DiC animated television show Sonic the Hedgehog, abbreviated as Sonic SatAM. As the song was a popular piece of Sonic media during the '90s, the trailer received acclaim from audiences, with many appointing it as a fit to the trailer and the film's aesthetic. The song, along with Gotta Go Fast, were included in the film's official soundtrack.

Theatrical
The film premiered in Glasgow, Scotland on April 1, 2004. It was later released theatrically in the United Kingdom and the United States on April 4 and 9, 2004 by Paramount Pictures, and internationally on April 11, 2004 by Universal Pictures. The film was rated PG by the Motion Picture Association of America for some rude humor, mild peril, language and action.

15-Year Anniversary release
A remastered version of the film, titled Sonic the Hedgehog: The Super-Sonic Edition, was released on April 12, 2019. It was a completely uncut version of the film, remastered by a team of studio developers at Paramount Pictures into 4K Ultra HD, with surround sound audio technology by Dolby Atmos and Dolby Vision.

Box office
Sonic the Hedgehog debuted on April 4, 2004 in the United Kingdom, on April 9, 2004 in the United States and on April 11, 2004 internationally. The film grossed $397.4 million in the United States and Canada and $502.3 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $899.7 million against its reported budget of $75-85 million. Breaking several box office records, the film became the second-highest grossing film of 2004, behind Shrek 2.

Critical response
Sonic the Hedgehog holds an approval rating of 95% on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes based on 196 critics, with an average rating of 8.95/10. The sites' critical consensus reads: "Fast-paced, speedy, beautifully animated, and a breathtaking adventure, Sonic the Hedgehog is an animated dessert for fans of the classic Genesis games to enjoy." On Metacritic, the film holds a weighted average score of 88 out of 100 based on 21 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences polled by CinemaScore assigned the film an average grade "A" on its scale of A+ to F.

Home media
Sonic the Hedgehog was released on VHS and DVD on June 20, 2004, on Blu-ray on September 17, 2007, on Blu-ray 3D on November 30, 2010, and on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray on July 19, 2017 by Paramount Home Entertainment.

Comics
A line of comics were written by Patrick Casey and Josh Miller, and published by Scholastic in November 2004. Its last issue was published on April 28, 2006.

Video game
A video game based on the film was developed by Paramount Interactive, Nick Games, and Ubisoft and published by Ubisoft. The game was released on March 10, 2004 for the PlayStation 2, Xbox, GameCube, and PC. A DS port was later launched on April 11, 2005, published by DSI Games. The game was released on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 later on July 6, 2007, also published by Ubisoft. The Wii port was released on August 12, 2007.

Sequels
Sonic the Hedgehog was followed by two sequels: Sonic the Hedgehog 2 in 2008, and Sonic the Hedgehog 3 in 2011, thus making it the Sonic the Hedgehog trilogy.