Sonic Mania artist Tyson Hesse has revealed that he was recruited to head up the recreation of the Sonic the Hedgehog movie design following fan rejection of the film’s original character design.

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Honored to have been brought in to lead the design on the new Movie Sonic. Working with Jeff and the modelers, riggers, texture/fur artists and animators in LA, London, and Vancouver was a thrill I'll never forget. #SonicMovie pic.twitter.com/HhcVIxAhXB — Tyson Hesse (@tyson_hesse) November 12, 2019

29 Images of the Sonic Movie Redesign 29 IMAGES

Talking on Twitter, Hesse explained that he worked with modelers, riggers, texture and fur artists and animators to help redesign Sonic. The end result is an anthropomorphic hedgehog that looks like the actual game character, rather than a strange human/hedgehog hybrid made in a lab.Hesse said that he was “honored” to have been asked, noting that the experience “was a thrill I’ll never forget.”Hesse has a long history with Sonic, having contributed to the Sonic comic series and created the animated intro for 2017’s Sonic Mania. He also developed spin-off animated shorts for the game.The backlash to the original movie design started the moment the first trailer dropped earlier this year, and was so intense that the film was delayed to allow time for the character to be redesigned. The Sonic art team, led by Hesse, have worked surprisingly quickly, allowing a new trailer to be released featuring the updated design in a matter of months.Sonic The Hedgehog will release February 14, 2020. It was originally set to release this month.The movie’s producer previously said that he believed fans will be pleased with the Sonic redesign , and the reactions so far seem to confirm that

Matt Purslow is IGN's UK News and Entertainment Writer. You can follow him on Twitter