Sonic The Hedgenhog (2020)

Sonic the Hedgehog is a 2020 action-adventure comedy film based on the video game franchise published by Sega. The film is directed by Jeff Fowler in his feature directorial debut and written by Pat Casey and Josh Miller. It stars Ben Schwartz as the voice of Sonic the Hedgehog and Jim Carrey as Doctor Robotnik, as well as James Marsden, Tika Sumpter, Natasha Rothwell, Adam Pally, and Neal McDonough. In the film, Sonic teams up with local town sheriff Tom Wachowski to find his lost rings and escape Dr. Robotnik.

Development for a film began in the 1990s, but did not go beyond the planning stage until Sony Pictures acquired the film rights in 2013. Production involved the collaboration of Sega Sammy's Japanese studio Marza Animation Planet, with Fowler brought in to direct in 2016. After Sony put the project in turnaround, Paramount Pictures acquired it in 2017. The majority of the cast signed on by August 2018, and principal filming took place between September and October that year in Vancouver and on Vancouver Island. Following the negative reaction to the first trailer in 2019, the film's release was delayed by three months to redesign Sonic.

Sonic the Hedgehog premiered at the Paramount Theatre on January 25, 2020, and was theatrically released in the United States on February 14, 2020. Critics praised the performances (particularly that of Schwartz and Carrey), Sonic's design, and its faithfulness to the source material, but criticized the plot for its lack of originality.^[11][12] The film set the record for the biggest opening weekend for a video game film in the United States and Canada. It grossed $306 million worldwide, becoming the second highest-grossing film of 2020,^[13] and the highest-grossing video game film adaptation of all time in North America. A sequel was announced on May 28, 2020.^[14]

Sonic, an extraterrestrial blue hedgehog who can run at supersonic speeds, finds himself sought after by a tribe of echidnas for his power. His guardian, Longclaw the Owl, gives him a bag of rings that can create portals to other planets, using one to send him to Earth while she protects him from the echidnas, and also gives Sonic a map to a planet filled with mushrooms to use if he finds trouble on Earth. Ten years later, Sonic enjoys a secret life near the town of Green Hills, Montana, but longs to make friends. He idolizes the local sheriff, Tom Wachowski, and his veterinarian wife, Maddie, unaware the pair are planning to relocate to San Francisco soon, as Tom has been hired by the San Francisco Police Department.

One night, Sonic becomes upset over his loneliness when playing baseball by himself, and runs at supersonic speed as a result, inadvertently triggering an electromagnetic pulse that knocks out power across the Pacific Northwest. Roboticist and scientific genius Doctor Robotnik is enlisted by the United States Department of Defense to uncover the source of the outage. Robotnik discovers and tracks Sonic, who hides in the Wachowskis' shed. Tom discovers Sonic and accidentally shoots him with a tranquilizer, causing him to send his bag of rings through a portal to San Francisco. Tom reluctantly agrees to help Sonic before Robotnik arrives at the Wachowskis' house and the two flee. As the pair evade Robotnik, who labels Tom a domestic terrorist, they slowly bond, with Tom learning about Sonic's desire for a real friend.

Robotnik comes across one of Sonic's quills, discovering the power in it has the potential to fuel his robots, and becomes obsessed with capturing Sonic. As he tracks them down, Tom discusses his plans to leave Green Hills, which Sonic disapproves of. Shortly after defeating a robot sent by Robotnik, an explosion injures Sonic. Arriving at San Francisco, Tom brings him to Maddie, who revives him. While Tom explains about their situation to Maddie, Sonic receives a new pair of sneakers from Maddie's niece. The group heads to the Transamerica Pyramid, where Sonic's bag of rings landed, and recover them. Robotnik arrives in a hovercraft and attacks them, forcing Sonic to use a ring to send Tom and Maddie back to Green Hills.