Way to go, folks. You gave Sonic the Hedgehog a complex.
After a trailer that fans greeted with disdain and anger, the director of the upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog film confirmed that the movie’s release date has been pushed back by three months, from November 2019 to Valentine’s Day 2020. The change was made so visual tweaks could be applied to the design of the titular lead character. I’m sure you know but people were NOT happy with Sonic’s new and “improved” look. They didn’t like his eyes, his human-looking teeth, his gloveless hands, his dinky thin legs. They didn’t like a lot. Actually, they didn’t like ANYTHING.
The delayed date isn’t that drastic but it’s still a surprising turn of events. However, it’s also unsurprising given the age we live in. It’s 2019: fans are able to respond in realtime and often directly to the creators they harbor grudges against. Before the advent of social media, people weren’t able to make their opinions known, especially to those making choices. Now people are able to shout directly at those in charge and the artists are able to respond in kind. It’s a big peek-behind-the-curtains moment for our pop culture, a major change to the ways of the past. You know my opinion on the matter, I think it’s getting a bit excessive. Am I happy that Sonic will look more like his traditional self? Sure, but do I think this is a slippery slope? Yes, yes I do.
Here’s the official announcement from director Jeff Fowler. Imagine him tweeting this as he wipes the sleep from his eyes, rubs his five o’clock shadow and downs another cup of coffee.
Let’s hope Sonic’s design is the biggest flaw with the film because it’s far too late to improve the script at this point…
Sonic the Hedgehog will now spin into theaters on February 14, 2020.