There was quite a lot of backlash concerning this year’s Sonic the Hedgehog film after the design for the titular character was originally revealed. After some time reworking, however, the film moved in a more cartoon-esque direction with Sonic now appearing more like the hedgehog that fans know and love. Now the director of the film has stepped forward to discuss the uproar over the original design as well as offer insight to some fun moments in the film.

Sitting down in an interview with Prima Games, Jeff Fowler explained how the original live-action version of the character was always going to be risky. He noted how the team at Blur Studios had the idea of a completely new version of Sonic the Hedgehog that fans had never seen before. Unfortunately, the design was not something that fans were prepared for, let alone something they wanted for the first theatrical Sonic movie.

“That was always going to be very tricky,” Fowler revealed. “Just because you have an idea, you’re showing Sonic in a way he’s never been seen, which is in a realistic, live-action, horror movie. And this had [never] been attempted. So, the difficulty factor was very high, but the second time is the charm, right?”

Thankfully, Fowler explained that the team was fully open to change even though it took a massive amount of resources to edit the film to what it is today. “I can joke about it now,” he added. “I might not have been quite in such a laughing mood back when it first happened, but we were open to change and were give a chance to think through it, as a filmmaker, that’s what you do.”

On a similar note, Fowler explained that it wasn’t the team’s intent to pay homage to the video game when creating the film but rather the character of Sonic himself. Still, it didn’t stop the team from adding in small easter eggs here and there to honor the character’s roots. For example, the director pointed to one of his favorite moments from the film where Sonic is playing around with nunchucks. The scene shows the hedgehog’s headband is actually a reference to the first Sonic the Hedgehog, as it replicates the logo from the game’s opening title screen.

All this effort assembling a worthwhile Sonic the Hedgehog movie wouldn’t have amounted to much without the film’s cast, which Fowler called a “genie in the bottle.” The director commended the talented cast of James Marsden, Jim Carrey, and Ben Schwartz having a major part in the film’s success, the crew really pulling it together in the end and making for a well-received run at the box office.

The Sonic the Hedgehog movie is currently available to view at home digitally, with a release on physical media becoming available May 19th. Did you enjoy seeing the fastest hedgehog alive on the big screen? Will you be picking up a copy of the movie for your own viewing pleasure at home?  Let us know your thoughts on the Sonic the Hedgehog movie and more in the comments section below. As always don’t forget to follow Don’t Feed the Gamers on Twitter for 24/7 coverage of all things gaming and entertainment.

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