Sonic the Hedgehog: Project Shadow

Sonic the Hedgehog: Project Shadow is a 2010 American live-action/computer-animated adventure fantasy film directed by Brett Ratner, written by Steven Spielberg and screenplay by Spike Lee, George Lucas, Adam McKay and Gary Scott Thompson. Based on the video game franchise published by Sega, it is the sequel to Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), and the second installment of the original Sonic the Hedgehog film series. It stars voice actors, Ben Schwartz, Hayden Christensen, Amy Palant, Dwayne Johnson, Katherine McNamara, Kathleen Delaney, Jim Carrey, and Tyler Perry. The film continues as Sonic the Hedgehog, Tails and Knuckles the Echidna attempt to save the world, while Shadow the Hedgehog, Doctor Eggman and Rouge the Bat attempt to conquer it.

Following the critical and commercial success of Sonic the Hedgehog in December 2006, Sega announced and immediately set to work on producing a sequel. In May 2007, Martin Scorsese was hired to write the script and Ratner was signed to direct. Schwartz, Johnson, Carrey, and Perry were set to reprise their roles from the first film, while Palant and McNamara were brought in to replace Karen Bernstein and Hannah Tointon in the role of Tails and Amy Rose. In the late months of 2008, Christensen and Delaney filled out the supporting cast. Filming took place from November 2008 to November 2009, mostly in San Francisco and Chicago as in the first film, except for a key sequence in Boston. The sequel, Episode Metal was released on November 30, 2011.

Sonic the Hedgehog: Project Shadow premiered in Los Angeles on November 30, 2010, and was released in the United States on December 24, and in Japan on January 19, 2011, as part of Phase Two of the NCM, and the first Nintendo film using IMAX Technology and released into IMAX Theatres. It received generally positive reviews from critics, who considered it an improvement over its predecessors. It was a commercial success, grossing over $60 million against a $70 million budget. It grossed $462 million worldwide, making it the eleventh-highest-grossing film of all time.

Plot
Coming soon

Cast

 * Ben Schwartz as Sonic the Hedgehog
 * Hayden Christensen as Shadow the Hedgehog
 * Amy Palant as Miles "Tails" Prower
 * Dwayne Johnson as Knuckles the Echidna
 * Katherine McNamara as Amy Rose
 * Kathleen Delaney as Rogue the Bat
 * Jim Carrey as Dr. Robotnik / Dr. Eggman
 * Tyler Perry as E-123 Omega

Development
Plans to make a sequel came about before the release of Sonic the Hedgehog, Brett Ratner had seen the first film and was awed by it, saying: "When I saw Sonic the Hedgehog, I was like, 'Damn, why didn't I think of that?' Growing up in South Central L.A., we had street races all the time." Ratner's rave reaction of the film as well as the culture of street racing in general influenced his decision to direct the sequel. The director also claimed that the concept of street racing could be something young audiences can relate to.

There were two film treatments submitted early on, one of which did not involve Clark Gregg's character in the event the actor would not return for the sequel. Ratner credited Top Gun as a major influence for the film, particularly with regard to the action sequences.

Pre-production
Immediately after Sonic the Hedgehog 's 2006 release, Sega announced that they were developing a sequel, with an intended release date of December 24, 2010. In May 2007, after several months of negotiating, Ratner officially signed on to direct. That same month, the screenplay was written by Spike Lee and Adam McKay, along with George Lucas and Gary Scott Thompson.

In September 2007, Sega came to an agreement to film, Sonic the Hedgehog: Project Shadow, as well as their next seven films, at Raleigh Studios in Manhattan Beach, California. A few days later, Amy Palant and Katherine McNamara were hired to replace Karen Bernstein and Hannah Tointon. On being replaced, Bernstein stated, "There was no explanation, apparently the contracts that we write and sign aren't worth the paper that they're printed on sometimes. Promises aren't kept, and good-faith negotiations aren't always held up." Entertainment Weekly stated Spielberg did not enjoy working with Bernstein, often re-shooting and cutting his scenes; Bernstein's publicist said he had a good experience playing the part, while Sega chose not to comment. As Spielberg and Kaufman chose to reduce the role, Sega came to Bernstein to discuss lowering his salary—Bernstein was the first actor hired in the first film and was paid the largest salary. The publication stated they were unsure whether Howard's representatives left the project first or if Sega chose to stop negotiating. Scorsese denied the part of the report which claimed the size of the role had fluctuated. In November 2011, Bernstein stated that, going into the film, the studio offered him far less than was in his three-picture contract, claiming they told him the second will be successful, "with or without you," and, without mentioning him by name, said Carrey "took the money that was supposed to go to me and pushed me out."

In September 2008, Hayden Christensen and Angelina Jolie entered negotiations to play a pair of villains. A few days later, Christensen confirmed he would take the role, and that his character would be Shadow the Hedgehog. Dwayne Johnson confirmed that he and Perry would be returning to voice Knuckles the Echidna and E-123 Omega. Sega entered into early talks with Jolie to play Rogue the Bat, though she was unable to take the role due to a previous commitment to star in Salt. Jim Carrey confirmed that he had been in discussions to reprise the role of Dr. Robotnik from the first film, but that contract disputes were making a deal difficult. Carrey stated, "There was a huge kind of negotiation that broke down. I don't know. Maybe I won't be Eggman."

In October, Carrey and Sega came to terms, and he was signed to play the character in up to five films. Schwartz and Christensen discussed his part during a roundtable discussion with David Ansen at the 2007 Golden Globes, and Christensen met with Spielberg and Kaufman to discuss the role. Christensen almost dropped out because of Sega's initial salary offer of $250,000, but the studio raised the offer, and in early November, Christensen signed on. Later that same day, Kathleen Delaney signed on to play Rogue the Bat. In early November, Garry Shandling, William Hurt, and Kate Mara joined the cast.

Filming
Principal photography began November 22, 2008, at the Pasadena Masonic Temple, with the working title Dark Times. The bulk of the production took place at Raleigh Studios, though other locations were also used. Scenes were filmed at Edwards Air Force Base from December 11 through December 13. The location had also been used for the first film, and Ratner stated that he felt the "real military assets make the movie more authentic and the topography and the beauty of the desert and flightline open the movie up". Although Christensen appears to be free solo climbing in the film with the help of special gloves, in reality, he was securely attached to the Burj Khalifa at all times by multiple cables. Industrial Light & Magic digitally erased the cables in post-production.

Many of the film's interior scenes were shot at Vancouver's Canadian Motion Picture Park Studios, including a key transition scene in a specially equipped IMF train car and the fight between Hunt and Hendricks in a Mumbai automated multi-level parking garage (which was constructed over a six-month period just for the film). The Vancouver Convention Centre was modified to double as downtown Bangalore. Filming in Vancouver concluded on June 12, 2009. Filming wrapped in Hawaii on November 30, 2009.

Post-production
Visual effects and animation for Sonic the Hedgehog: Project Shadow was provided by Sega's Marza Animation Planet and Moving Picture Company, after previously working on the first film. John Whittington was announced as co-screenwriter on November 10, 2007. Additionally, DNEG also provided the visual effects for the mushroom planet and the cockpit of the robots, giving it a total of 207 shots used in the film from the studio. The Golden Gate Bridge set used both a physical set which was extended digitally, and a fully computer-generated model of the bridge that also included the ocean and nearby hills.

Music
Further information: Sonic the Hedgehog: Project Shadow (soundtrack) and Music of the Nintendo Cinematic Multiverse

Theatrical
Sonic the Hedgehog: Project Shadow was first theatrically released by Warner Bros. in several international markets, including France and the Netherlands on November 22, 2010 and the United Kingdom on December 15, 2010. The film held its world premiere at the Regency Village Theatre in Los Angeles on November 30, 2010. and was theatrically released in the United States on December 24, 2010.

Home video
Sonic the Hedgehog: Project Shadow was released on DVD and Blu-ray on May 24, 2011. The film was also collected in a 8-disc box set titled "Nintendo Cinematic Multiverse: Phase One – The Beginning", which includes all of the Phase One films in the Nintendo Cinematic Multiverse.

Box office
Sonic the Hedgehog: Project Shadow grossed $190.9 million in the United States and Canada, and $211.8 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $402.7 million.

In the United States and Canada, Project Shadow was released alongside Yogi Bear and the wide expansion of Tron: Legacy. Several days before release, it was projected to gross at least $55 million from 4,232 theaters in its opening weekend. With its target audience aged between 16 and 25, its release coincided with the start of winter break in 15% of K–12 schools. The film made $26.8 million on its first day, including $6.25 million from Thursday night previews, doubling that of the original movie. The film went on to gross $72.1 million over its three-day opening weekend, surpassing the original film's three-day opening ($58 million) and Bruce Almighty ($68 million) to become Jim Carrey's highest three-day domestic opening and Warner Bros.' biggest two-day opening since 2008. Six million tickets were sold in the U.S. and Canada during its opening weekend. It broke the opening record for a video game movie adaptation, which was previously held by the original Sonic the Hedgehog. Among opening audiences, males made up 61%, those aged between 18 and 34 comprised 46% of ticket sales and those below 17 comprised 32%, and the ethnic breakdown was 38% were Hispanic/Latin American, 29% Caucasian, 20% African American, and 13% Asian or other. In its second weekend, the film made $29.3 million, finishing second behind The Chronicles of Maria: The Voyage of Dawn Treader.

Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade "B+" on an A+ to F scale.

Sequels
Main article: Sonic the Hedgehog film series

Transcripts
Coming soon