In the graveyard of failed video game movie adaptations, Sonic the Hedgehog is the rare success story. Now the actor who played the titular character is revealing how he scored the gig.
Ben Schwartz is a fairly well-known comedic actor, having appeared in a multitude of shows including Space Force, Bojack Horseman, and Parks and Rec. On his Twitter page, Schwartz said he would be doing a 30 minute Q and A.
One user sensed an opportunity and asked: “How did you get picked for Sonic? Were you the immediate choice or did you have to go through months of auditions?”
Schwartz then graciously explained the process he went through with the filmmakers and how he ended up voicing the iconic role.
“They made a test video to sell the movie to studios (before paramount was involved) and they asked me to record Sonic for that as a favor. Then the movie got greenlit and they had their process to find someone but kept coming back to that test footage and loved how i played it.”
There you have it. He did such a good job in a test video that producers couldn’t find anyone better. Of course, the movie hit a speedbump in the design department early on, but rallied and ended up being a monster hit, earning somewhere north of $300 million. Not too shabby.
Earlier this year, Schwartz reprised his role in a sequel and that movie ended up making even more money than the original.
Something tells me there’s going to be a Sonic 3 announcement in the near future.