Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the Sonic the Hedgehog film franchise cross over in fan art depicting Leonardo cosplaying as the blue blur in honor of voice actor Ben Schwartz's contributions to both characters. Schwartz is well-known for voicing Sonic in Paramount's live-action Sonic the Hedgehog films. He also contributed his voice acting skills to Leonardo in the Nickelodeon series Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, as well as its subsequent Netflix movie.
Now, impressive fan art from artist Deacon "D-Con" sees Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' Leonardo dressed as Sonic the Hedgehog's titular character.
D-Con included a time-lapse video of his drawing to the tune of "City Escape" from Sonic Adventure 2. The young artist is only 15 years old, making his crossover piece all the more impressive.
How Ben Schwartz Brings TMNT & Sonic To Life
Schwartz's roles as Leonardo and Sonic highlight his knack at bringing life to teenage heroes who are also anthropomorphic animals. While D-Con is right about the association of blue with both characters, Leonardo and Sonic are also similar because of the action-packed adventures they've gone on. Leonardo was part of the action in Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and its Netflix follow-up, while Sonic always took center stage in both of his titular films.
Both roles are also similar in their presentations aside from being animals of action. Leonardo is the eldest brothers of the turtles who, in Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, is still doing his best to act as a leader that his younger siblings can look up to. The Sonic depicted in the Sonic the Hedgehog films is still young, and hasn't quite learned how to master leadership skills on his quest to help people and make new friends as his adventures continue. However, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 showed he's gradually growing up.
Schwartz's ability to bring life to similar characters like Leonardo and Sonic while also making them feel like different heroes is a testament to his skills as a voice actor. The comedian's successful performances for both iconic characters indicate that he will continue to have a lucrative career voicing more memorable characters in the future. D-Con's art acts as a delightful tribute to Schwartz's talent in Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Sonic the Hedgehog.
Source: Deacon "D-Con"/Instagram