Paramount+ is now the exclusive streaming home of one of the best video game movies ever, proving just how valuable the genre is becoming. Indeed, the old adage about the ‘video game movie curse’ is quickly becoming obsolete – as proven by Nintendo Studios entering the film industry with the billion-dollar (plus) success of a Super Mario Bros. movie. Whether they are animated, live-action, or a combination of both, more and more video game movies are not only breaking through at the box office, but also creating some of streamings most valuable content blocks.
Videos by ComicBook.com
Sega has been sitting on the sidelines while Nintendo grabs all the box office real estate: Sega’s own mascot character, Sonic the Hedgehog has become one of the biggest stars in family movies over the last few years. Paramount now has an official Sonic trilogy under its belt, with a fourth film already in development. Many fans consider Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (2022) to be the highlight of the trilogy, and after lending the film out to Netflix for a time, Paramount+ is now the only place to go if you want to stream the sequel.
Sonic 2 Was A Game-Changer
Sonic 2 hit theaters in April of 2022 and became a box office hit, ultimately grossing $405.4 million worldwide on a budget of around $100 million. That was a very significant achievement at the time: Sonic 2 was one fo the first big films to really signal the resurgence of theatrical movies after the COVID-19 pandemic had brought the industry to standstill in many markets around the world. It was also a significant achievement for video game movies, a genre which (at the time) needed all the big box office wins it could muster, as Super Mario Bros., HBO’s The Last of Us, Amazon’s Fallout, and Peacock’s Twisted Metal series were still a year (or more) away. When looking back now, Sonic 2 really seems like the moment where video game movie/TV adaptations entered an exciting new era.
Diving a bit deeper: Sonic the Hedgehog 2‘s success also transformed the Sonic franchise from a would-be attempt to realize the game onscreen, to a bonafide franchise universe IP. The film introduced Idris Elba’s Knuckles to the franchise, and then spun him out into his own successful limited series that streamed on Paramount+ in 2024. It also set up the threequel, Sonic the Hedgehog 3, to continue the upward trend, earning almost $500 million worldwide, and pleasing fans everywhere.
So what makes Sonic 2 work so well? Idris Elba’s Knuckles is the quickest and easiest answer; the hot-headed Echidna is a perfect foil for Sonic, while Elba’s dry, straight-faced delivery was hilarious funny in its ironically unironic nature. However, beyond Knuckles, Sonic 2 nails a kind of perfect balance between sketch comedy-style sequences and a larger thematic story about what true heroism means.
While we never get full transparency from streaming services, it’ snot hard to imagine that Paramount got a sense of the kind of numbers Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was doing on Netflix, and want to be the only one to offer the film.
How to Stream the Entire Sonic the Hedgehog Trilogy
Currentlty you can stream Sonic Hedgehog 1, 2, and 3 all on Paramount+. However, Sonic 3‘s recent release in theaters means it’s also available on other streaming platforms, such as Sling TV, Amazon Prime Video and MGM+.
In Sonic the Hedgehog 2, “After settling in Green Hills, Sonic is ready for more freedom, and Tom and Maddie agree to leave him home while they go on vacation. But, no sooner are they gone, when Dr. Robotnik comes back, this time with a new partner, Knuckles, in search for an emerald that has the power to both build and destroy civilizations. Sonic teams up with his own sidekick, Tails, and together they embark on a journey to find the emerald before it falls into the wrong hands.”
Most Viewed
-
Image courtesy of Crunchyroll -
Image courtesy of HBO Max.
