Ben Schwartz has revealed that Sonic the Hedgehog 2 almost included an easter egg reference to his Parks and Recreation character Jean-Ralphio. Schwartz, who also helped to voice the fan-favorite droid BB-8 in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, played the self-proclaimed pick-up artist and “baller” Jean-Ralphio Saperstein on the acclaimed comedy series Parks and Recreation since it first aired in 2009. In 2020, Schwartz provided both his voice and facial motion capture for the big-screen adaptation of Sega’s beloved video game character Sonic the Hedgehog.
Also starring James Marsden and Jim Carrey, the original Sonic the Hedgehog film became one of the most successful video game adaptations of all time. Grossing over $319 million at the worldwide box office, it was the 6th highest-grossing film of 2020. Given its success, plans for a sequel were officially announced in May of 2020, just months after the first film’s release.
Schwartz and his fellow castmates returned for the sequel, which also introduces Idris Elba’s Knuckles into the film franchise. In a recent interview with Supanova Comic-Con and Gaming, Schwartz revealed that, amongst the latest film’s many pop-culture references, they had originally planned to include a direct reference to his Parks and Recreation character but it was ultimately cut by director Jeff Fowler. Check out his full comments below:
We almost snuck in two. We did one where something terrible was happening and Sonic was trying to sneak around it and we put in a ‘don’t be suspicious', and then Jeff’s like, ‘We can’t have two Jean-Ralphio references.’ Maybe we’ll try to leak one more in there for the next one.
The ‘Don’t Be Suspicious’ reference refers to a viral moment from the show’s series finale, titled "One Last Ride," during which Jean-Ralphio fakes his death in order to collect on his life insurance policy. After watching his own funeral, Jean-Ralphio and his sister, Mona-Lisa, break into a song and dance, blowing their cover in the process. The audio has since gone on to become a TikTok sensation, inspiring thousands of videos in the process.
Given the growing Sonic franchise’s penchant for humor and pop-culture references, a ‘Don’t Be Suspicious’ call out probably would not have seemed too far out of place, but Fowler’s decision does make sense. After all, there is a fine line between inserting fan service easter eggs and being too over-the-top and cheesy. From the sounds of it, both Schwartz and Fowler are already keen to keep going with more Sonic movies, so with any luck, there will be plenty more opportunities for those sorts of easter eggs to make their way into future films. In the meantime, fans can check out all the other pop-culture references with Sonic the Hedgehog 2, currently showing in theaters.
Source: Supanova Comic-con and Gaming
