#internetbacklash

678,000 people...

...That’s how many people disapproved of Paramount Pictures’s first official trailer for their upcoming live-action movie Sonic The Hedgehog. Paramount received heavy internet backlash concerning the appearance of the main character – Sonic.

Within a two days of release, director Jeff Fowler responded to the criticism on Twitter – stating how “the message is loud and clear”, with changes to Sonic promised to be made before releasing the film in November.

This rapid response would not have been possible if social media wasn’t as prominent as it is today. As we are living in the digital age, crowdsourcing as increasingly become more popular within various organisations. It has become a growing, fast-paced and effective way for organisations to collect the best concepts from online communities and utilise them in a manner that benefits both the contributor and the organisation. Despite this, one-third of marketers do not monitor social media accounts and trends – leaving them at a disadvantage in this digital era. Crowdsourcing has also been an engaging and faster way for audiences to interact with organisations like Paramount Pictures and provide simultaneous feedback.

The presence of social media also contributes to the facilitation of communication systems; especially distributed networks. 

Through a distributed network, social media allows for a message to be delivered efficiently to the receiver. In December 2018, a leaked design of Sonic was published on Twitter. However, due to the nature of a distributed network, the damage had already been done; with screenshots of the design spreading like wildfire on social media. The trailer released a few months later only solidified audience concerns – resulting in the outburst of built up disgust for the appearance of Sonic the Hedgehog.

During this time, these audiences have become networked publics. They are actively engaging in shared culture as reactors, re-makers and re-distributors of the film’s trailer as a form of media reception. Various videos posted on YouTube expressing audience reactions, and memes of Sonic’s unnerving appearance have gone viral – further dominating the message in which the audience aims to deliver to Paramount Pictures.

I’m personally not a fan of Sonic’s live-action look, so here’s a prayer that this ‘fix’ changes my mind.