Sonic The Hedgehog’s blue alien critter has been the talk of the town, for better or worse, when it comes to the new video game film. But little Sonic (James Marsden) would have anyone to endear or horrify without James Marsden’s grounding presence in the movie and impeccable comedic reactions.
The actor sat down with Screen Rant prior to the film’s Valentine’s Day release and chatted about building the onscreen dynamic with an actor who wasn’t onscreen. He also had words of high praise from comedy icon and costar Jim Carrey, as well as words of hope for the possibility of another go-round with the X-Men.
So, before we get into Sonic, I’m gonna let you know Cyclops is my all-time favorite superhero I legit have Cyclops socks on right now.
Yeah, I love Scott Summers.
James Marsden: Woah, I did not see that coming.
This movie’s amazing. It’s incredible. Talk to me about the difficulties or the challenges it took to hit those comedy beats without Sonic actually being there. Because you did such a great job at hitting every comedy note.
James Marsden: Oh, I’m gonna - how much you want for them?
You did an amazing job. Every comedy beat just was there. Also, you got to act alongside the great Jim Carrey. And this brought out my childhood, because this was the Jim Carrey that I remember when I was a kid. Can you talk to me about improv-ing against him? How was that experience?
James Marsden: Well, thank you, first of all. That’s very nice of you to say. I think it’s trusting the comedy that’s on the page. It’s understanding what the scene is, and seeing what the writers came up with; the intention of the scene. Knowing Ben Schwartz is going to go crush it.
I got to hang out with Ben a bit before we started filming, obviously, because we’re not in the same room together. I’m looking at a piece of tape or a blue stuffed animal. I guess it’s, like, trusting that you don’t have to overcompensate for nothing being there. You might feel like, “I have to overdo it because there’s nothing really there.” It’s like, no, let’s keep this as natural and real as possible. No one’s gonna buy into this friendship unless it feels real.
And so I would just go into my imagination, listen for Ben’s voice. I would just try to imagine him reading his line in a really funny way, and responding as if you were talking to like a 12 year old kid who’s like wide-eyed and curious about the world, and has this innocence and energy. Yeah, it’s an interesting process. It’s not the usual process.
This is a surreal moment for me, because literally Cyclops is my childhood hero by far. It’s crazy to me. So, I gotta ask: because I know earlier… Patrick Stewart came out and said he met with Kevin Feige about possibly reprising the role of Professor Xavier. Have you talked to Marvel, or would you even be up to reprising the role of Cyclops again?
James Marsden: It was terrific. I mean, we would workshop the scenes before we start shooting them, and we would literally write down ideas of where it could go. I mean, he would bring up… It’s so great to work with artists that come wanting it to be great. Come wanting it to be great; come with ideas; “Here’s what I want.”
You work with actors sometimes that just go through the motions. It’s not inspiring. And he was inspiring, mainly because I grew up watching him just like you did, and now I’m in scenes with him. So, it was super special to get to actually workshop the scenes together and find little moments. And there were a couple of moments that I surprised him with something that wasn’t on the page, and it was just so reciprocal and generous with each other.
More: Ben Schwartz Interview for Sonic the Hedgehog
James Marsden: Great question. I mean, I look at those three movies I was in, and it became a huge part of my life. It was a family, all of them. And I was very grateful too. Like, that’s 40 years at the time of backstory and iconic characters, beloved characters.
So, I’d be a fool to say no to that. Of course, I would. Who knows where that universe goes? Feige is still a friend of mine, and we talk occasionally. But you just don’t know where it’s gonna go. Right now, it’s with all the young guys; all the kiddos. But I would never be opposed to coming back to that. I hold a special place in my heart for that experience.
- Sonic the Hedgehog Release Date: 2020-02-14
