This little-known Sonic the Hedgehog fact has been blowing people’s minds.

Sonic the Hedgehog has been a beloved franchise for over three decades, with the first video game released on the Sega Genesis console in 1991. Whether you’ve been a fan of the speedy blue hero since then or have recently fallen in love with the character through the movie series, Sonic and his friends have left an indelible mark on millions.

However, even the most dedicated fans were taken aback by a little-known detail about how one character got its name. This intriguing fact relates to Sonic’s sidekick, Tails, who debuted in the 1992 sequel game, Sonic 2. The yellow fox character also features in the 2022 Sonic 2 movie and returned for more action in Sonic 3, which was released last month.

Polygon unearthed this fact during an interview with Ben Schwartz, who voices Sonic in the movie series. They informed him that Tails’ real name, Miles Prower, is a clever play on words fitting perfectly into the “gotta go fast” world of Sonic – leaving Ben astounded.

A TikTok video shared by Polygon shows Ben mistakenly calling Tails “Miles Prowler”, only to be corrected that his surname is actually “Prower” without the extra “L”. The interviewer then revealed: “It’s a pun on miles per hour.”

Ben was gobsmacked as he blurted out “Oh my god” upon realising that he, star of the famed saga, had been clueless about the origins of the character name in the series. He then rang up Colleen O’Shaughnessey, the voice behind Tails, to see if she was clued up on the unique backstory of their character’s moniker.

When Colleen asserted her prior knowledge, Ben was crestfallen, admitting his embarrassment at being the last to know, having never pieced it together himself.

However, the fans watching the video leapt to his defence, with several confessing the trivia was news to them too. Loads were taken aback to discover Tails’ actual given name, having pigeonholed him in the same category as Sonic the Hedgehog, Shadow the Hedgehog and Knuckles the Echidna – characters referred to by their species names alone.

One follower posted: “I didn’t know his name wasn’t Tails! ” A second added: “Today I learned that Tails has a real name.” Meanwhile, a third shared: “I don’t know why it never clicked that it was miles per hour, when I did know about Miles Prower.”

Other eagle-eyed fans pointed out that wordplay is no stranger to the franchise, highlighting the villain Doctor Ivo Robotnik – portrayed by Jim Carrey in the silver screen adaptation – whose title is a clever twist coupling ‘Robot’ and ‘Sonic’.

Someone stated: “Did you know Robotnik is just the words Robot and Sonic put together? Robot Nic. And Ivo is pronounced evo in Japan which sounds like evil.”