Sonic the Hedgehog moves to February 2020 following dental surgery delays

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Three weeks ago, Paramount Pictures let their first trailer for director Jeff Fowler's SONIC THE HEDGEHOG out of the gate. Unfortunately, it didn't take long for the internet to have a meltdown about the titular character's questionable design, with some folks on Twitter going so far as to say that Sonic's human-looking teeth were "creepy" and "nightmarish." Understandably, this got Fowler and the studio's attention, who then vowed to redesign the blue bomber before the film's November release. After the announcement, some fans were left feeling divided about being a part of the outcry, as this meant that the project's effects team would be working under insane "crunch" conditions to get the job done. The whole ordeal quickly became a "damned if you do and damned if you don't" situation, thereby begging the eternal question: What the hell do we do now?

Today, Fowler gave an answer to the inquiry by stating that SONIC THE HEDGEHOG is now set for a February 14, 2020 release, as opposed to the project's original date of November 8, 2019. Obviously, the switch is meant to give the production staff more time to perform dental surgery on the character, in addition to making other changes that will satiate the speedster's rabid fan base.

You can see Fowler's tweet detailing the almighty public's reaction to that first trailer below:

Personally, I'm not the type to lose sleep over the film's design of Sonic the Hedgehog, even if I do find the character's look to be a might funky. The thing that kills me about this whole situation is that you just know there was someone on that design team who thought Sonic's "final" form was a bad idea. Honestly, can you even begin to imagine the amount of "I told you so" floating through that effects office, right now? I sure hope that whatever they come up with next hits the mark, because redesign costs don't come cheap, and I've no idea how this movie will perform at the box office. My best of luck to all the designers, who, at the very least, now have more time to "get it right."

The official synopsis for SONIC THE HEDGEHOG:

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG is a live-action adventure comedy based on the global blockbuster videogame franchise from Sega that centers on the infamously brash bright blue hedgehog. The film follows the (mis)adventures of Sonic as he navigates the complexities of life on Earth with his newfound – human – best friend Tom Wachowski (James Marsden). Sonic and Tom join forces to try and stop the villainous Dr. Robotnik (Jim Carrey) from capturing Sonic and using his immense powers for world domination. The film also stars Tika Sumpter and Ben Schwartz as the voice of Sonic.

SONIC THE HEDGEHOG will now race into theaters on February 14, 2020.