Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (the movie) releases today, which is apparently just the beginning of a planned Sonic Cinematic Universe (SCU?) by Paramount. But, in the words of the SA2 fandub Dr. Eggman (you know the one), director Jeff Fowler is gonna go higher — he’s gonna pass up the MCU! Or at least show it up, because he wants to make a Smash Bros. movie starring the Blue Blur and the Red Plumber.
“Nothing would make me happier than to just throw all the characters into a battle royale and do a big Smash Bros. thing. That would probably require some work from the lawyers before that could happen,” Fowler states.
Mario is finally seeing the silver screen after several decades away in an animated movie produced by Universal and Illumination that’s already leading to a Donkey Kong solo spinoff, so the building blocks for some kind of Smash Bros. crossover are theoretically possible. Emphasis on the theoretically. While Sonic has proven his ability to make a movie that plays well with the crowds (if maybe not the critics), Nintendo franchises (save eternal juggernaut Pokémon) have yet to prove anything of that regard. And you need more than Mario and Sonic for a proper Smash Bros. movie — are we going to get Zelda movies? Metroid? Kirby? More?
The difficulty of a Smash Bros. movie as opposed to an Avengers one is that the Avengers had a long history of sharing storylines, tone, characters, and more with other Marvel comics. Super Smash Bros. is usually not concerned with crafting some elaborate crossover story in turn (though Subspace Emissary kinda slapped, Idk I was 11), and the lore and tone of such franchises don’t mesh easily. Not to mention that Marvel was able to work only with properties in-house to build up its universe — if we truly want to see a Sonic and Mario Smash movie that requires many companies’ approval and cooperation, way more than Marvel and Sony shaking hands on a new Spider-Man. While definitely nice to dream about, there are a ton of obstacles in place that make it difficult, if not improbable.
Besides, do we really want another cinematic universe? Do we want a shadowy Master Hand voiced by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson to appear in a post-credits scene and tell Link about the Super Smashing Brothers initiative? Would they try to make Kirby say words? We still don’t know what Chris Pratt as Mario even sounds like, people. Even though this stuff is the height of fandom dreams, there are many externalities we have to consider before demanding it from the powers that be.
Anyway, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (the movie) releases today. Go see it and tell me if Shadow the Hedgehog shows up at the end to point a gun at Sonic’s head or something.
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Written by Amelia Fruzzetti
A writer and Nintendo fan based in Seattle, Washington. When not working for NinWire, she can be found eating pasta, writing stories, and wondering about when Mother 3 is finally going to get an official localization.
