Vancouver Island is getting a lot of attention on YouTube these days, even if most of those watching probably don’t know it.
Island-shot Sonic the Hedgehog will hit theatres on Feb. 14, and although much of the online focus has been on Sonic’s new animation, Ladysmith has some nice feature shots in the new trailer too.
The trailer, which has been viewed over 7 million times and was number one on YouTube’s trending page, features prominent shots of Ladysmith, including an aerial shot of downtown Ladysmith and a fight scene on First Avenue, the town’s main street.
“A big thanks again to everyone for helping accommodate the filming. Film is and will be a great opportunity for Ladysmith as we move into the future,” Mayor Aaron Stone said in a Facebook post.
After the initial trialer in April, the film faced criticism for the way the animation of Sonic looked.
Fans were upset about Sonic’s eyes and teeth in particular and thought the character was ‘creepy’. The design is now much closer to how Sonic appears in the video games that the film is based on.
Paramount and Sega bowed to the demands of fans and reanimated the beloved character, which pushed the release date back. Originally, the film was scheduled to release on Nov. 8 2019.
Alongside Sonic, voiced by Ben Schwartz the film stars Jim Carey as Dr. Robotnik, and James Marsden as Tom Wachowski.