Sonic 3's Billion Dollar Chances, Swingers 2 Almost Happened - TJCS Newsletter

NO, SONIC 3 DOES NOT HAVE A CHANCE AT THE BILLION-DOLLAR CLUB

There’s nothing I love more in the world of movies than loving a film that I didn’t think was going to be very good. Sonic The Hedgehog back in 2020 was one of those movies for me. The film was charming, hilarious and legitimately had some heart to it all while having a show stealing performance from the great Jim Carrey.

The film was a modest success making a solid $320 million dollars at the worldwide box office. The second film… while not quite as good as the first, was a worthy follow-up and did even better at the box office taking in $405 million.

So $320 Million for the first film, and $405 Million for the second film. Ok… so why do I have people writing to me weekly insisting I should be adding Sonic 3 to my list of movies with the potential to join the Billion Dollar club this year? There is just… no… way. It ain’t going to happen. Here are some reasons why:

1. If Sonic 3 had any chance of hitting the Billion dollar mark, the second film would have made a LOT more at the box office. A LOT MORE. There are already 2 films out and the average box office between them is $360 Million per film. That means the 3rd film would need to make that, PLUS an additional $640 million. Sure, Deadpool 3 took a jump up to the Billion dollar mark, but the previous 2 Deadpool films averaged about $783 million each. It only needed to make about 25% more to get to the Billion dollar mark. Sonic 3 would have to make almost 200% more than the average of the previous 2 movies.

2. Knuckles. I love the character in Sonic 2, but his stand-alone Paramount+ series was not all that good. Instead of intensifying excitement for Sonic 3, I think it may have hurt it. At least a little.

3. There is nothing game-changing coming in the third film. Again, using Deadpool 3 as an example, two massive developments went into Deadpool and Wolverine hitting that Billion mark. First of all, Deadpool was now in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Second, Hugh Jackman came out of retirement to play Wolverine again. Sonic has no such game-changing elements that would result in a MASSIVE bump from the first 2 movies at the box office. An increase? Yes, absolutely. A 200% increase over the previous 2 films. No chance.

I can’t wait for the new Sonic movie. I’ve adored the previous 2 and I have no reason to believe the third won’t be every bit as good. But we already know roughly how popular this series is, and it’s not a Billion dollars worth of popularity. ~John

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ANNOUNCEMENTS

1. My out-of-the-theater review for Alien: Romulus will come out Thursday afternoon.

2. Channel members town hall meeting will be Thursday night at 8pm Los Angeles time.

3. I’m still dealing with the aftermath of being sick after Comic-Con. My cough is still pretty bad although otherwise I feel 100%. Those of you who have followed me for a while know that when I get sick the cough tends to stick around for weeks or even months. So I apologize in advance that I have to have Halls in my mouth and drink more than usual to get through a show.

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OTHER INTERESTING STORIES WE’RE NOT COVERING ON THE SHOW

1) Rachael Lillis Dies: ‘Pokémon’ Voice Actor For Misty & Jessie From Team Rocket Was 46

• Rachael Lillis, the voice actress for Misty and Jessie in the Pokémon anime, passed away at the age of 46.

• Lillis died on August 10th, 2024, after battling breast cancer, which she was diagnosed with in May 2024.

• Her fellow Pokémon voice actress, Veronica Taylor, who voices Ash Ketchum, shared a heartfelt tribute on social media, praising Lillis' talent and kindness.

• The official Pokémon account also expressed their condolences, acknowledging Lillis' lasting impact on the franchise.

• Lillis was known for her diverse voice acting roles, including Intress in Chaotic, Thalia in Shadow of the Elves, and many others.