Sonic the Hedgehog 2 has overperformed during its opening weekend, making a much bigger splash than the original movie. Even though it isn't a huge critical hit, and has quickly become a favorite amongst audiences and fans of the video game series.
And because it introduces tons of new characters and is way more faithful to the games than the first movie, the road to get to this point is almost as entertaining as the film itself. Between Jim Carrey giving away cars and the crew blowing up food, the cast and crew have revealed some insightful moments during the development and production of the movie.
Idris Elba Improvised Knuckles Dialogue
Knuckles is not only many fans' favorite character from the Sonic video games, but he has quickly become everybody's favorite from the movie franchise too. Along with the character's stoic persona and how sexy he apparently is, part of what makes the character great is Idris Elba's approach to Knuckles' voice.
The voice is typically gravelly, but Elba brought even more to the role than audiences know. The actor explains that the director allowed him to say whatever he wanted, and most of Elba's dialogue is improvised. It's hard to believe given how brilliantly delivered every line is and how it comes at the perfect time, but it's just a testament to how broadly ranged of an actor Elba is.
Jim Carrey Wanted Robotnik's Round Suit
In 2020's Sonic the Hedgehog, while Jim Carrey gave an incredible performance and made the role of Dr. Robotnik his own, he didn't remotely resemble the iconic-looking video game character. Where the Eggman had a huge ginger mustache, a bald, egg-shaped head, and a boulder-like body in the games, Carrey's portrayal had a full head of hair, was stick-figure thin and had a well-groomed black mustache.
However, his appearance in the sequel is a lot closer to the games, but there's still something missing. Carrey reportedly wanted the round suit, but studio executives shot the video down. But eagle-eyed fans can see a reference to the suit in the new movie, as it appears on Agent Stone's supercomputer when he's designing new suits.
Why Carrey Returned For A Sequel
Carrey has been extremely vocal about not wanting to do sequels to his movies, and though he has starred in them before, Dumb and Dumber To and Ace Venture: When Nature Calls are rare exceptions. However, there's a special reason why Carrey was willing to return for a Sonic the Hedgehog sequel.
The actor is seemingly learning from past experiences, as he explains that "if you do it long enough after the fact, you're kind of imitating yourself." The actor likes how Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was thrown into production immediately after the first movie. Not only that, but he believes he can see Robotnik's revolution in his head too.
The Sequel Starts A New Universe
Every movie studio is seemingly trying to turn all of their properties into cinematic universes, and Sonic the Hedgehog is no different. The director of the movie explained that the second movie in the series is the start of a cinematic universe.
Given how Sonic 2 is getting endless praise from fans and is more similar to the games than the original movie, it could end up being one of the most realized cinematic universes ever. There have been loads of failed cinematic universes, but given the success of the first movie, and Sonic the Hedgehog 2's huge opening weekend, there's no way a Sonic cinematic universe can fail.
Ben Schwartz's Favorite Sonic Character Hasn't Appeared In The Movies Yet
Everybody knows who Tails is, and a good percentage of general audiences are even aware of Knuckles and Shadow. But there are tons of obscure Sonic the Hedgehog characters that the movie franchise is yet to take advantage of. And, surprisingly, one of the more obscure characters is Ben Schwartz's favorite Sonic character.
The Sonic voice actor's favorite character is Big the Cat, a dumb but lovable Mobian cat who grew up on the hedgehog's homeworld. If the movie world does expand and ends up being a huge cinematic universe, fans will undoubtedly see Big the Cat sooner rather than later, as he became a franchise regular in the 2000s.
The Threequel Was In Development Before Sonic 2 Was Even Released
Fans don't need to worry or pay close attention to the sequel's box office figures to ensure a Sonic the Hedgehog 3, as Paramount already greenlit a threequel. According to a list of Paramount movie announcements, a third movie entered development before Sonic 2 was even finished.
If a third movie was never going to happen, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 would have joined the group of infamous movies with unresolved cliffhangers. And along with the third movie, the studio also announced a Knuckles spin-off series. It just goes to show that the studio has so much confidence in the series and sees the potential of where it can go.
The Cast Blew Up A Cake For Sonic's 30th Birthday
Just as it hit the blue hedgehog's 30th birthday, the crew had wrapped principal photography for the movie in Hawaii, and they had a strange but exciting way of celebrating the occasion. A Sonic the Hedgehog-themed cake was made especially for the character's birthday, which even had gold rings made of icing, but nobody got to enjoy the sweet treat.
Instead of eating it, director Jeff Fowler blew the cake up and thousands of little pieces of sponge flew across the beautiful-looking Hawaii resort. The remnants of the cake sitting on the table were then covered in flames, and the only way it could have been better was if Carrey, in character as Robotnik, blew it up himself.
The Movie Was Given A Different Title In Japan
There's no art behind naming a movie. A film title is essentially another way to market a film, and some movie titles might not appeal to other countries in the same way they do in the US. That leads to studios changing the names of movies for foreign markets, and there are tons of movies with different titles in the UK, and that's no different when it comes to Japan too.
Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was given a different title in Japan, Sonic vs. Knuckles. There's no explanation as to why, but it could be because of how popular "vs." movie titles are in the country, as there has been a long history of face-offs in Japanese cinema.
Carrey Bought A Crew Member A New Car
While so many reports come out about troubled movie productions and crews being unhappy about the working conditions, the crew of Sonic 2 were seemingly in such high spirits. No actor can keep morale on a movie set higher than Jim Carrey. Along with him keeping everybody entertained with his goofy mannerisms and optimistic attitude, Carrey awarded one crew member a new car.
The actor held a raffle for the entire crew, and the winner was given the keys to a Chevy Blazer RS, which is worth over $40,000. This isn't the first time fans have heard about Carrey's philanthropy, as he's been known to do things like this on other movie productions too.
The Movie's Codename Title Was Emerald Hill
When a movie enters production, it's sometimes given a codename, and that's most often the case when it comes to hugely anticipated sequels. According to Business Insider, The Batman had the appropriate codename Vengeance, and Deadpool's codename was named after the character's favorite band, Wham.
Sonic the Hedgehog 2's codename title was Emerald Hill, which is the name of the first level in the Sonic the Hedgehog 2 video game. Unfortunately, the movie didn't feature Emerald Hill, but its hilarious opening sequence does have a faithful rendering of Mushroom Hill.