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Report: Columbia Pictures to Adapt Sonic Film

By 

Tristan Oliver

– March 21, 2014

Sega Allegedly Financing “Dark, Edgy Version Skewed Towards Older Audiences”

If you thought Sonic Boom was huge, this has enormous potential to further shift the Sonic landscape if it pans out. We direct you to a report from reputable Hollywood insider site The Tracking Board, which reported exclusively yesterday about plans for a Sonic film with Sega on board to finance:

It’s recently been confirmed that a movie adaptation of SONIC THE HEDGEHOG is in development at Columbia Pictures, with the studio going for a dark, edgy version skewed towards older audiences! NOT ONLY this, but the studio plans to make it a mix of live-action and animation, allowing the much loved character to really meld with reality.

[....]Original Films and SEGA are onboard to finance, with Neal Moritz and Toby Ascher producing. Samuel Dickerman, Hannah Minghella, and Foster Driver are overseeing the project as executives at Columbia.

The only thing to do now is find a writer for the project, and an awesome shortlist has already been put together with some real heavy hitters:

• Brad Bird (“Incredibles, “”Wall-E,” “Brave,” “Toy Story 2,” “Up”)
• Wernick & Reese (“Deadpool,” “Monsters Inc,” “Zombieland,” “GI Joe Retaliation”)
• David Berenbaum (“The Spiderwick Chronicles,” “Elf”)
• Phil Johnston (“Wreck it Ralph” and “Nebraska”)

Sonic has a long history, as it’s been adapted for the small screen numerous times in the past – once as an animated movie (1996) and once as an animated television series (1993). This project currently in development, however, will bring an entirely new edge to the story, revealing the darker side of the blue hedgehog. It’s a smart move by Columbia, as many fans of the original game are now into their late 20′s to early 30′s, and would need a stronger draw to get them into the theater. It also allows relatively new fans to join in – those who only know Sonic from the new Nintendo Wii versions or their Android/iPhone devices. Someone at Columbia is either a huge fan of the hedgehog themselves, or they just have a really good sense of the current market. Either way we are not complaining, as the movie could be a really big hit if development continues in this direction.

We are, for the moment, treating this as RUMOR, though given the media avenues Sonic Boom aims to conquer, it is a little puzzling why the silver screen was left out of the equation. This project would fill that void.  Sega has been very quick to shoot down reports like this of late, if for no other reason than the fact it’s not coming directly from their PR. We will see how much traction this gets inside their circles, but typically, silence from Sega will say all that needs to be said.  We will continue to follow developments, and if you know more about this project, or can provide insight or clarification, please send us a news tip.